The growth of Arabian airlines from a German perspective – A study of the impacts of new air services to Asia

Airlines from Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Oman have gained significant market shares in international air transport. Traditionally travellers have chosen hubs like Amsterdam, Frankfurt, London or Paris as transfer points for trips to Asia. With the inauguration of non-stop services to places like Abu Dhabi, Doha or Dubai, new choices for air travellers have emerged. We analyse data derived from German air transport statistics on the effects of passenger flows between the airports of Düsseldorf and Hamburg to Asian destinations. They suggest that services introduced by Emirates stimulated passenger demand for Asian destinations, while incumbent hubs do not lose transfer passengers. Regarding travel times and connection quality of routings between secondary airports in Germany and Asian destinations, comparing routings of Emirates Airlines and Lufthansa suggests that due to geographic and scheduling constraints, services via Arabia do not constitute a perfect substitute for time-sensitive passengers.

► Air services via Arabia do not constitute a perfect substitute for time-sensitive passengers between secondary airports in Germany and Asian destinations.
► Services from Germany introduced by Emirates Airline stimulated passenger demand for Asian destinations but incumbent hubs did not lose transfer passengers.
► Although Emirates Airline has introduced services to Dubai from Düsseldorf and Hamburg, Lufthansa has protected its positions at Frankfurt and Munich by increasing capacity and offering faster services to the Asian market.