A neuro-fuzzy combination model based on singular spectrum analysis for air transport demand forecasting

• Air traffic is complex due to its irregularity, volatility and seasonality.
• We propose a hybrid approach, SSA–ANFIS–IPSO, for air passenger traffic prediction.
• HK air passenger data are collected to establish and validate our model.
• Empirical results prove the proposed approach possesses the enormous potential.

Air transport demand forecasting is receiving increasing attention, especially because of intrinsic difficulties and practical applications. Total passengers are used as a proxy for air transport demand. However, the air passenger time series usually has a complex behavior due to their irregularity, high volatility and seasonality. This paper proposes a new hybrid approach, combining singular spectrum analysis (SSA), adaptive-network-based fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) and improved particle swarm optimization (IPSO), for short-term air passenger traffic prediction. The SSA is used for identifying and extracting the trend and seasonality of air transport demand and the artificial intelligence technologies, including ANFIS and IPSO, are utilized to deal with the irregularity and volatility of the demand. The HK air passenger data are collected to establish and validate the forecasting model. Empirical results clearly points to the enormous potential that the proposed approach possesses in air transport demand forecasting and can be considered as a viable alternative.