Up in the Air: The Role of Airports for Regional Economic Development

Short on the role of airports in for regional development in earlier work, our research examines two things: (1) the likelihood for the region to have an airport in the first place and (2) the effects of airports for regional economic development. Based on multiple regression analysis for US metros, we find that airports are more likely in larger metros with higher shares of more cultural workers and warmer winters are more likely to have an airport in the first place. We also find that airports add significantly to economic output per capita, when controlling for other variables, and that the size of the airport activities matters.