On 12 June 2024, ENAC (Ecole Nationale de l’Aviation Civile), with the support of the airlines Air Caraïbes and French bee (Groupe Dubreuil) via the ENAC Foundation, officially launched the TRAVEL Chair (susTainable aiR mobility and new pAssenger behaViour modELling) in Toulouse, dedicated to the study of new sustainable air mobility, particularly through the prism of passenger behaviour.

This new chair is a first in two respects: it is the first French chair in economics applied to air transport and the first chair in the world dedicated to the study of passenger demand. In particular, it will carry out surveys, data collection and quantitative, formalised analysis of consumer behaviour on a scale never seen before.

The objectives of the TRAVEL Chair

To seek a better understanding of the structural changes in passenger demand, in particular by studying the choice of modes of transport and intermodality (partnership/competition between modes of transport).

To study the conditions under which technical progress and various operational innovations could meet new expectations, particularly in terms of the sustainability of the sector.

Its missions

• Produce and analyse quantitative data to provide a better understanding of trends in passenger demand;
  
• Produce economic models to quantify and analyse the mechanisms at work in the development of demand in the transport market;
  
• Exploit the results of its research in such a way as to produce directly operational elements for the definition of strategies by air transport players and decision-makers;
  
• Disseminate the results of its work to all players and decision-makers in the sector, in particular through publications and scientific events.

This Chair adopts a unique multidisciplinary scientific approach, based on expertise in economics and economics applied to air transport.

Its holder, Estelle Malavolti, is a professor at ENAC and an associate researcher at the Toulouse School of Economics (TSE). A specialist in Industrial Economics applied to air transport markets and regulatory and competition policies, Estelle Malavolti is also a member of the European Commission’s Performance Review Body and an air transport expert for major institutions (ICAO, European Union, Academy of Sciences, World Bank, etc.).

Olivier Chansou, Director General of ENAC, said: “This Chair, based on ENAC’s unique expertise, is a tremendous opportunity for our school, but also for the entire sector. A better understanding of demand is essential if we are to anticipate and support structural changes in air transport systems. This research will be strategic if we are to fully meet the expectations of users and, more broadly, of society as a whole.“

Christine Ourmières-Widener, Chairman and CEO of Air Caraïbes and President of French bee, added: ‘It was vital for us to support such a project in the public interest. Mobilising ENAC’s expertise to gain a better understanding of the evolution of demand is of course of interest to us as airlines, but it is also of interest to the sector as a whole. The results of this work, which will be made public and intended for decision-makers, will enable us to move forward collectively, in an enlightened way, on the necessary developments in our activities and to shape the future of air transport’.

For her part, Estelle Malavolti is delighted to have been entrusted with this mission. ‘Current research, often from management disciplines, focuses essentially on technical progress as a solution to the challenge of air transport sustainability. This work is necessary and contributes to the debate on the decarbonisation of the sector, but it is not enough. We need to work on demand, on the transformation of the needs, uses and expectations of passengers, which will anchor these reflections in the reality on the ground and therefore enable them to be objectified’.

Finally, Sadika Houari, President of the ENAC Foundation, added: ‘We are very proud of the support of French bee and Air Caraïbes through their sponsorship of this new research chair, whose objectives are particularly relevant and consistent with the Foundation’s actions to develop research and innovation, as well as its commitment to the ecological transition of air transport.’