Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
2 7
THE POLITICS AND GEOGRAPHIES
OF INTERNATIONAL
Introduction
Tourism and transport are fundamentally integrated to provide both a means of transporta-
tion as well as an often important component of the tourism experience. Air transport in
particular has substantial relevance for international tourism as it is the vector by which most
international travel is realised. Beyond tourism, the provision of air transport bears strong
correlation with economic development and productivity (which includes tourism), and thus
overall competitiveness (IATA, 2007). The size of the air transport sector gives some indica-
tion of its importance to the wider global economy as well as the tourism sector that sits
within it. Prior to the global recession, global passenger traffi c was measured by the
International Air Transport Association at US$ 2.3 billion for both 2007 and 2008 (prior to
the widespread recession). It was not until June 2010 that, according to the association, air
travel demand fi nally returned to pre-recession levels.
The broad purpose of this chapter is to provide a review of the critical issues faced
by geographical researchers in the international air transport sector and what this can
mean for tourism fl ows, mobilities and access. We examine these through a political lens
that incorporates politics (as manifested through trade policy) and geography. We then
show how they are impacted by three salient issues for research facing international commer-
cial air transport today: technological innovation, emissions mitigation policies and place
competition.
The politics of international air access
International air access is highly political. The ability of an airline to operate to multiple
airports is subjected to negotiations between the country in which it is designated and the
countries to which it wishes to offer services. The result is a complex web of bilateral - and
sometimes multilateral - air service arrangements that govern airline route networks, capacity
and sometimes tariffs. The exchange of access rights that characterises international air serv-
ices is based in systems of international trade (Saggi and Yildiz, 2010) and correlates strongly
with spatial fl ows of both goods and services (O'Connor, 2010) and liberalisation of trade
(Gillen
et al.
, 1999).
