Analysis of Global Hub Airports
This report by independent aviation consultants JLS Consulting, on behalf of Heathrow Airport Ltd. examines airport capacity in cities around the world to see if there is any evidence of split demand across multiple airports. It is structured in five sections:
- Section 1 examines the consumer arguments for having more than one hub in the Southeast of the UK.
- Section 2 explores the question of whether any cities around the world support two hub airports.
- Section 3 highlights the dilemma for hub airlines in needing short haul feed but facing potential losses incurred on short haul networks.
- Section 4 argues the reasons why an alliance grouping cannot is an unreliable approach to create a hub arrangement.
- Section 5 examines the future scenarios of ‘hub by pass’ resulting from new technology aircraft such as the Boeing 787 and Airbus A350 and the potential growth of the Low Cost Long Haul model.
The report concludes while there are numerous cities around the world with multiple airports they use those airports for different functions. It argues that the complexity and financial difficulties of integrating carrier schedules to make use of transfer traffic explains why there are so few hub airports in the world, ‘let alone two competing hubs in the same city’.
Finally the report argues that countries with emerging aviation markets have all based their strategies around hub airports. For example, Dubai’s new airport will become the single home for the airline Emirates, Doha’s new airport will aim to replace the old one as Hong Kong did with Chep Lap Kok Airport, and Istanbul is planning the same approach.
The press release from Heathrow Airport Ltd. regarding the study can be found here.