The economic and social impact of European airports and air connectivity

Results
The research shows that European airports contribute to GDP with approximately €121 billion directly. The indirect effects through supplier networks amount to approximately €89 billion per year. In total, including catalytic effects from tourism, it is shown that aviation contributes approximately €505 billion GDP to the European economy. This is equivalent to approximately 2 and 3 percent of the European economy. The share of this contribution in employment corresponding to the GDP is slightly above 3 percent. Further analysis shows that a ten percent increase in direct connectivity (number of flights) results in an increase of half a percent in economic activities (measured in GDP) for the years 2004-2019. Finally, the research shows a connection between aviation and broader societal considerations; this connection cannot be seen separately from the direct economic effect. The external climate impact of European aviation in 2019 is estimated at 211 Mt CO2.

The research
SEO has mapped out the regional economic and broad impact of airports on behalf of ACI EUROPE. With more than 500 airports, ACI EUROPE represents more than 90 percent of all airports in Europe and some countries around Europe (Turkey, Uzbekistan, etc.). In addition to the analysis of traditional economic effects of aviation on economic growth (measured in GDP) and employment, the study focuses on the climate impact of aviation. The study also looks at the connection between aviation (accessibility) and the sustainable development goals and applies a set of different econometric techniques to address as best as possible the two-sided relationship (endogeneity) between aviation and economic development.

Methods used
The research combines input-output modeling with econometric panel data techniques. Supplementary information was collected through surveys among the members of ACI EUROPE.