Starting from the premise that airports can be run as commercial successes, The Airport Business aims to place the business as a whole within a conceptual framework. The author examines the major issues facing airports throughout the world, and offers an insight into how to deal with the major economic and financial difficulties that are likely to arise in the next decade.

Airports were once seen as just another, fairly inconsequential arm of the public sector. Over the past 20 years however, it has become obvious that airports can actually run as highly successful and profitable businesses. However, despite this success, the industry has, until now, had no guide to the economic principles underlying it. "The Airport Business" attempts to change this. The book opens with an overview of the airport business, examining patterns of ownership and control of the world's largest airports. The author considers the key issues which will affect airport managers during the 1990s, such as privatization, the growing shortfall in airport capacity and the need to develop new and innovative sources of finance. Another important aspect of the book is cost strategy. All this can be applied internationally but because of the unique system practised in the US, a chapter is devoted to the experience there. Likewise, there are difficulties peculiar to the Third World, which are also examined in a separate chapter.