The development of the Gulf region’s air transport networks – The first century

This paper employs the concepts of centrality, intermediacy and proximity to explain the evolution of air transport networks in Asia and applies them to the region surrounding the Arabian Gulf. In doing so the paper provides a structured, historical account of the development of air transport in a region that occupied a central place for important trade routes for thousands of years. The paper argues that there has been a “principal axis shift” so that the role of the region is no longer defined as an intermediate section of the east-west routes. Indeed, the region has come to re-occupy a central place in trade and travel flows serving a fundamentally changed global aviation network building upon the economic and social development within the region.

► The paper examines the changing role of civil aviation in the Arabian Gulf region. ► We map the impact of technology and social and economic development on air networks. ► It is clear that the region’s importance for east-west routes declined over time. ► We document a fundamental change reversing that trend – a “principal axis shift”. ► The result is that the Gulf is now a central place in global trade and travel flows.