COMPETITIVENESS OF THE TOURIST AIR PASSENGER MARKET IN EUROPE
Abstract
The article examines the competitiveness of tourist destinations in European countries amid post-crisis recovery of passenger air transport and the reorientation of Ukrainian airlines toward EU markets. The study is relevant due to uneven market recovery, increased safety and regulatory constraints, and insufficient consideration of aviation in existing tourism competitiveness indices. Using data from 29 countries and 11 indicators covering passenger flows, aviation and tourism infrastructure, digital and institutional readiness, safety, sustainability, and cultural resources, descriptive statistics, correlation and multicollinearity analysis, principal component and cluster analysis were applied. Results identify three key competitiveness components and four country clusters, reflecting asymmetric recovery of air passenger flows. Findings can inform benchmarking Ukraine’s position, target clusters, and phased strategies for restoring passenger air transport to enhance national tourism competitiveness.
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