Aviation supply and demand in the São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro systems evolution: An exploratory study

Abstract Aim/purpose – Multiple factors affect a passenger’s origin and destination airport choice. This study explores some of the leading indicators associated with performance in cities with more than one airport. Two important Multi-Airport Systems (MAS) in Brazil were the object of this study: São Paulo (Congonhas and Guarulhos) and Rio de Janeiro (Santos Dumont and Galeão), the most significant demand-generating centers in the country and the most critical distribution centers of flights from South America. Design/methodology/approach – Using public databases presenting the evolution of supply and demand from 2013 to 2018, the evolution of flights, and the sales by airlines in the same period, we estimated a linear model using panel data on a multiple linear regression with fixed effects. Findings – One of the results observed is that competition between airlines positively affects prices for consumers, the industry, and tourism, which is vital for the country. Research implications/limitations – The limitation of the findings is the lack of current data. Originality/value/contribution – In filling the gap in the literature on the evolution of supply and demand in the Brazilian aviation market, the study evaluates some of the leading indicators associated with performance in cities with more than one airport.