ABSTRACT
There are a number of distinctive features that differentiate US airports from many other airports, such as in the UK, Ireland, Germany, Australia and New Zealand, where there have been recent developments concerning airport regulation. These differences can be divided into four categories, namely ownership; finance sources; the airport-airline relationship; and the provision of facilities and services. US airports enter into legally binding contracts with airlines, known as airport use and lease agreements, which detail the fees and rental rates which an airline has to pay; the method by which these are to be calculated; and the conditions for the use of both airfield and terminal facilities. By contrast with the compensatory approach, the airlines pay agreed charges and rates based on recovery of costs allocated to the facilities and services that they occupy or use. The chapter shows that the regulatory and legislative environment within which US airports have traditionally operated has been very different from airports elsewhere.
