Missed opportunities: The restructuring of Berlin's airport system and the city's position in international airline networks

Alberts, H.; Bowen, J.; Cidell, J.

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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/54558 Copy

Description

Title

Missed opportunities: The restructuring of Berlin's airport system and the city's position in international airline networks

Author(s)

• Alberts, H.
• Bowen, J.
• Cidell, J.

Issue Date

2009

Keyword(s)

• Berlin
• air transportation networks
• German reunification
• liberalization
• airline alliances

Geographic Coverage

Germany

Abstract

After its history as a divided city, Berlin was expected to become a major world city following reunification. While the city has grown in terms of investment and social capital, it has not attained the preeminent status on the global stage that was expected. One important reason for this is that Berlin remains no more than a secondary hub in the global airline industry. In this article, we measure the city’s importance in airline networks at four points from 1989 to 2006. We then explain the city’s stature in those networks today as a product of both larger forces in the airline industry and circumstances more specific to Berlin. The former include liberalization and the development of airline alliances. In Berlin, meanwhile, the fractured airport system, which the city inherited from the Cold War, has been an obstacle to Berlin’s aspirations for centrality in the airline industry. We trace the history of airports in Berlin, including the long planning process for Berlin Brandenburg International Airport, which will eventually replace the three separate airports still in use. Although Berlin’s history is unique, we argue that it is the larger economic and political forces affecting all airports that have fostered the city’s continued marginalization within the world’s air transportation system.

Type of Resource

• text
• other

Language

en

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http://hdl.handle.net/2142/54558

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