Climate Change and the Aviation Industry ― An Economic and Managerial Perspective

Climate change has become a crucial issue for the air transport industry. Back in 1999, the United Nation’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change published a specific report on Aviation and the Global Atmosphere. Since then policymakers as well as airline managers have taken a variety of measures to reduce the environmental impact of aviation. However, the implementation of mitigation measures in a global industry provides several challenges. The European Union has been forced to revise their comprehensive Emissions Trading Scheme, thereby causing competitive distortions between EU and Non-EU airlines. The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) has been given the task of developing a global market-based mechanism for the reduction of aviation’s greenhouse gas emissions until 2016, which should be implemented until 2020. Therefore, the topic will remain high on the international agenda. This book analyzes the political, economic and managerial challenges for policy makers and the air transport industry as they face climate change. Based on an overview of the scientific background and technological options for emissions reduction, the book provides an in-depth assessment of environmental regulation as well as environmental management as well as up-to-date analysis by top researchers from several different countries. It will be of interest to researchers in diverse areas (economics, political science, engineering, natural sciences), to air transport policy makers, and to managers in the aviation industry.

Dr Frank Fichert is Professor and Deputy Director of the Bachelor of Arts in aviation management programme at Worms University of Applied Sciences, Germany. Peter Forsyth has been Professor of Economics at Monash University since 1997. His research has been on applied microeconomics, with particular reference to the economics of air transport, tourism economics and of regulation. He has recently published a jointly edited book on Airport Competition the European Experience, Ashgate. Recent work has involved using computable general equilibrium models to assess the economic impacts of tourism, including events, and in analysing tourism and aviation policy issues. Hans-Martin Niemeier is Director of the Institute for Transport and Development of the Bremen University of Applied Sciences and Chairman of the German Aviation Research Society. He is known for his work on airport privatization, regulation and performance of European airports. A former airport regulator, he has previously conducted studies on the market power of Amsterdam airport, the role of benchmarking in incentive regulation of European airports and the performance of Norwegian airports. Hans-Martin Niemeier is Director of the Institute for Transport and Development of the Bremen University of Applied Sciences and Chairman of the German Aviation Research Society. He is known for his work on airport privatization, regulation and performance of European airports. A former airport regulator, he has previously conducted studies on the market power of Amsterdam airport, the role of benchmarking in incentive regulation of European airports and the performance of Norwegian airports.