Development of air service is a priority for many communities. Yet, air service development teams have little practical guidance on what techniques exist, and which are effective. Air service development (ASD) includes the attraction, initiation, expansion, retention, or any improvement of air service and can include changes in pricing, frequency, capacity, hub-connectivity, or the number of destinations. ASD techniques can include incentives; subsidies; guarantees; changes to rates and charges; marketing; cost-reduction measures; airport-community-airline partnerships; reducing third-party costs, such as ground handling or fueling services; or any other approach taken to encourage development of air service.
Currently no single resource document summarizes experience to date in ASD or offers guidance as to when and how different techniques should be used.
The objective of this project is to develop a guide that describes techniques that airports and communities can employ in their efforts to develop passenger air service. The guide should include fundamental information to assist airports and the communities they serve to understand the nature of ASD within the general context of the airport, community, and airline business perspectives.
Status: The final report was published at ACRP Report 18 in October 2009.
