ABSTRACT
This chapter aims to provide a comprehensive assessment of current issues and challenges in airport economics and finance. Airport pricing has been a major area of debate and theoretical research. Economic regulation of airports can have an effect on both airport efficiency and financial performance, through its impact on prices, cost and profits and its incentives or disincentives to invest. In air transport development, the volume and range of research related to airport economics and finance was very limited, particularly in comparison to the airline industry. A popular area of research has investigated the impact of ownership, governance and economic regulation. One of the key issues with airport costs is whether economies of scale exist, that is whether there are reductions in unit costs as the output increases. The chapter considers current knowledge and critical debate related to airport pricing and the airport–airline relationship, aeronautical and non-aeronautical revenues, and efficiency and performance measurement.
