Empirical Study and Discriminant Analysis of Airline Services in the Yangtze River Delta of China

Authors

  • Jianling Wang College of Economics and Management at Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, China
  • Robin Qiu Information Science, Penn State, USA
  • Yun Wang College of Economics and Management at Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, China
  • Junyan Wu College of Economics and Management at Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, China

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.11634/216837861403498

Keywords:

Airline Service, Civil Aviation, Customer Expectation, Service Dimension

Abstract

Like any other civil aviation marketplace around the world, the airline services in China become fiercely competitive. To stay competitive in the airline industry in China, it is critical for an airline to get an essential understanding of customer’s ongoing needs and know whether their needs are satisfactorily met. In this paper, an empirical study of the current airline service needs and quality in the Yangtze River Delta of China is explored using exploratory factor analysis. Discriminant analysis is further conducted to identify key service dimensions. Quantitatively and in an exploratory manner, structural equation models are employed by utilizing the IBM SPSS statistics tool. The findings in this study show that price, flight schedule, and customer relational benefit are crucial factors impacting on service quality and customer satisfaction in the current Chinese civil aviation market. To an airline, the highly valuable implications of the findings include a strong recommendation of adopting dynamic pricing schemes and improving flight schedules in the regions of China where high-speed train services become available.

Author Biographies

Jianling Wang, College of Economics and Management at Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, China

Jianling Wang is an associate professor with Economics and Management College at Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics. Dr. Wang’s research focuses on service science, marketing decision, and customer satisfaction.

Robin Qiu, Information Science, Penn State, USA

Robin Qiu is full Professor of Information Science at Pennsylvania State University. Dr. Qiu’s research interests include Service Science, Social Computing and Business, Service Systems, Business Analytics, Service Operations and Management, Enterprise Integration, and Control and Management of Manufacturing Systems.

Yun Wang, College of Economics and Management at Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, China

Yun Wang is a master student of with Economics and Management College at Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics. Her research focuses on strategy management and service management.

Junyan Wu, College of Economics and Management at Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, China

Junyan Wu is a master student of with Economics and Management College at Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics. Her research focuses on strategy management and service management.

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Published

2014-03-22

Issue

Section

Articles