Essay from the year 2007 in the subject Business economics - General, grade: 1,0, Edinburgh Napier University, course: Economics of Business Strategy, language: English, abstract: Since the world’s first airline company has been established (German Airship Transport Corporation in 1909), especially the new style of low-cost airlines increased the competition on the market for commercial flights. Towards the end of the century low-cost airlines offered first no-frills products at a low price. The concept originated in the U.S., before it spread to Europe in the early 1990’s and subsequently to the rest of the world (Chan 2000). One main reason for the accelerated increase of low-cost flights can be seen in the EU enlargement, where open skies arrangements were extended. As a result low-cost routes were established by existing and new operators. The main characteristic of this new strategic orientation was the lower operating cost structure than this of the traditional market participants. The traditional airline industry had to face an essential change in the market, with an increase of competition and new business models. Focusing on Europe, there were only a few low-cost airlines before the year of 2000. However, today about 60 low-cost carriers moved mainstream in Europe with a total market share of 24%, whereas in Germany 23 low-cost airlines operate (Berster 2007)... ...To evaluate the specific strategy of Germanwings it is necessary to set limits to the field of study. After introducing the company itself, the strategic position will be evaluated by focusing on Germany. Thus, Germanwings will be compared to the operators acting in this country. Therefore, it is useful to introduce a strategic mapping and the analysis of price practices focusing on Germanwings. Furthermore, important individual measures of the company will be explained which soften the impact of the above mentioned external influencing factors (PEST-analysis). Finally, some up-to-date measures of the company will conclude its strategic orientation.

This book follows the credo "Don't work hard - work smart". Smart in the sense of cleverness, systematic organization of work and time as well as farsightedness to open up business perspectives. In alphabetical order, the book presents the success factors, methods and strategies that help strengthen market positions and realign strategies. The clear chapters are also very suitable for reference. The book is aimed at managers, executives and self-employed people who want to use their most valuable resources sustainably and consciously to develop products and services that customers really want. Over 100 national and international case studies provide a high utility value. For the 2nd edition, numerous text passages have been revised, new case studies have been integrated and up-to-date data material has been made accessible. With valuable practical tips at the end of each chapter. The electronic usage of the German-language edition of the book has so far led to more than 1.6 million accesses.

Oliver Viellechner addresses the response behavior of incumbent firms when facing discontinuous change by innovative business models. Almost always, this entails a problem of inertia, i.e. the sluggishness of incumbent response due to insecurity in deciding on an adequate response strategy. Viellechner investigates disruptive change in the European airline industry during the 1990s, when low-cost airlines severely challenged established carriers. By conducting four case studies, he identifies new causes of inertia and reveals the role of top management teams in improving incumbent firms' responsiveness. Viellechner's new book is relevant to both researchers and managers. It links concepts of strategy, organizational and psychological research and sheds light on the new competitive structure of an industry which has been repeatedly challenged by entrants and external shocks.

This book provides a comprehensive overview of current strategic challenges and measures required to meet those challenges in a dynamic industry. Experts from aviation practice and management, in addition to acknowledged scholars, contribute to this volume and combine academic expertise with economic and business perspectives in an unprecedented way for the aviation field. The focus is not restricted to passenger airlines. The five parts of the book additionally include chapters on alliance management and formation, strategic issues for air freight carriers and airport companies, as well as impacts the airline industry exerts on its environment. The book combines both concepts and results from recent academic research with applications and case studies from major industry players. Readership includes academics, students on advanced aviation courses, senior aviation professionals in airline, airport and supplier companies, international organizations and governmental agencies.

The second edition of Rigas Doganis' book brings the airline industry story up to date, exploring airline mergers and alliances, price wars, the impact of disasters and the future prospects for the industry as a whole.

Low cost carriers (LCCs) represent one of the most exciting and dynamic yet often contentious developments in recent commercial aviation history. Formed as a direct result of policies of airline deregulation and liberalisation that were initiated in the United States in the late 1970s before being implemented in certain European, Australasian, Latin American and other world markets from the mid-1990s onwards to encourage competition, LCCs have been responsible for progressively reconfiguring the spatial patterns, operational practices and passenger experiences of flight. In the process, they have enabled growing numbers of people to fly to more places, more frequently, and at lower cost than had been previously possible. In so doing, however, they have generated a number of socio-economic and environmental challenges. The 23 essays included in this volume provide a detailed insight into the emergence, expansion and evolution of the low cost carrier sector worldwide. The volume covers deregulation and liberalisation of the global airline sector, the business models and operating characteristics of low cost carriers, the changing nature of the airline/airport relationship, LCC network characteristics, issues of pricing and competition and the current impacts and likely future trajectories.

This book takes a look at the critical issues facing the airline industry featuring contributions from key figures in Europe, the US and Asia. Elements for success and failure are discussed and material is offered for strategic thinking.

Managing Negotiations is a collection of seven global, real-life case studies on prominent negotiations in the realm of international business and politics. The book combines the rigorously researched frameworks of academia with the real-world challenges of negotiations. The cases combine scientific negotiation management practices as well as theories with real-world examples that demonstrate how to conduct successful negotiations and which prominent pitfalls to avoid. The topics discussed reach from mergers & acquisitions, collective bargaining, international diplomatic treaties to international free trade agreements. Each case study starts with an overview comprising three key objectives and ends with the key learnings as well as reflective questions for class discussion. This casebook can be used as recommended reading on Negotiation and Strategic Management courses at postgraduate, MBA and Executive Education level and serves as a guide for practitioners responsible for contract management, negotiation and procurement.

This book focuses on the factors that support the strengths of international airlines in general and the Asian airline carriers in particular. Defining the quality of human capital as the level of education and the competence of airline employees, it analyzes the efficiency of 39 airlines in various regions, both in terms of production and cost structures. It argues that, despite Asia’s well-developed and globally competitive manufacturing sector, aided by open market practices, its overall service sector still lags far behind more advanced economies. As this does not stop Asia-based carriers from generally being more efficient than their counterparts in Europe and North America, the book investigates how competitiveness analysis of the airline industry can help Asian policymakers better prepare for the liberalization of the service sector, given how crucial this aspect is for the future growth of the Asia-Pacific region. Efficiency and Competitiveness of International Airlines offers a valuable resource for policymakers, airline employees, and researchers and students of microeconomics.

The ongoing deregulation and liberalization of worldwide air transport markets confronts airport planners with an increasingly problematic context. On the one hand, the capital intensive, large-scale and complex airport investments need a detailed, long/medium-term planning of airport infrastructure. Such planning requires at least predictable traffic volumes (and traffic composition) within the planning horizon. On the other hand, airline route networks are increasingly dynamic structures that frequently show discontinuous changes. As a consequence, the much more volatile airport traffic restricts the value of detailed traffic forecasts. Volatility of airport traffic and its composition requires flexibility of airport strategies and planning processes. The book explores this dilemma through a detailed study of airline network development, airport connectivity and airport planning in the deregulated EU air transport market. The questions the book seeks to answer are: · how have airlines responded to the regime changes in EU aviation with respect to the configuration of their route networks? · what has been the impact of the reconfiguration of airline network configurations for the connectivity of EU airports? · how can airport planners and airport authorities deal with the increasingly uncertain airline network behaviour in Europe?