Maastricht

Aachen Airport:

Value creation and political influence

MASTER DEGREE PROJECT THESIS WITHIN: Business Administration NUMBER OF CREDITS: 30 ECTS PROGRAMME OF STUDY: ILSCM AUTHORS: René Paaß, Gijs Heldens JÖNKÖPING May 2020

Master Thesis in Business Administration

Title: Maastricht Aachen Airport – Value creation and political influence Authors: René Paaß and Gijs Heldens Tutor: Tommaso Minola Date: 2020-05-17 Key terms: Maastricht Aachen Airport, Aviation industry, Politics, Stakeholder influence, Value creation, Regional airport

Abstract

Background: The debate about the existence of Maastricht Aachen Airport (MAA) has received great media presence in the past years. The subject involves many stakeholders from various perspectives, while focusing on the politicians of Limburg and the government of the region representing the sole shareholder of the airport.

Purpose: The limited availability of neutral data regarding MAA created the urge for an unbiased research. The purpose of the research is to generate a political oriented overview of perceptions and values related to MAA that aids in determining the airport’s future by including various stakeholders of the region.

Method: A deductive approach has been chosen in order to execute the research, whilst focusing on Freeman’s Stakeholder Theory as a foundation. Qualitative semi-structured interviews have been conducted with seven politicians from six different political parties of the government of Limburg. Furthermore, the director of MAA has been interviewed, as well as a great number of inhabitants. These stakeholders have been identified due to their influential- and voting power with regards to the research purpose.

Conclusion: MAA is a regional airport with national significance, which adds value through its cargo handling. As other airports are reaching their maximum capacity in the Netherlands, there is an enhanced prospective for MAA in the future on the field of cargo. Its passenger flight value is limited due to the number of alternative airports in its direct vicinity. The current strategy of MAA depends on political decisions related to campaign promises rather than neutral qualitative and quantitative research. A complete Social Cost and Benefit Analysis would create a well-structured view on the existence of the airport and would aid in determining the position of the national government with regards to potential financial support and decision influence.

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Table of Contents 1. Introduction 1 1.1 Background 1 1.2 Purpose 4 1.3 Research Problem 6 1.4 Research Question 7 1.5 Delimitations 8 2. Literature Review 10 2.1 Regional aviation development in Europe 10 2.2 Dimensions of a small airport 11 2.3 Value creation of a regional airport 11 2.3.1 Infrastructure and Accessibility 12 2.3.2 Socioeconomic 13 2.4 Airport Strategy 13 2.5 Freeman’s Stakeholder Theory 14 2.6 Airport Stakeholders 16 2.6.1 Government 16 2.6.2 Inhabitants 17 2.6.3 Local companies 18 2.6.4 Airlines 19 2.6.5 Airport employees 20 2.6.6 Competitors 21 2.6.7 Passengers 22 2.7 Theoretical Framework 23 3. Research Methodology 25 3.1 Research philosophy 25 3.2 Research approach 25 3.3 Data collection method 26 3.3.1 Secondary data 26 3.3.2 Primary data 27 3.4 Sample selection 28 3.5 Research ethics 29 3.6 Analyses of data 30 4 Empirical Findings 32 4.1 Politicians 32 4.1.1 Political parties’ view on MAA 32 4.1.2 Provincial aid for MAA 33 4.1.3 MAA’s Financial Prospect 34 4.1.4 Hypothetical Scenario 35 4.1.5 Infrastructure and Accessibility 36 4.1.6 Perception of MAA 36 4.1.7 Comparison to other airports 38 4.1.8 Additional Government Measures 39 4.1.9 Political Party Overview 40 4.2 Director of MAA 41 4.2.1 Government Influence 41 4.2.2 Financial Stability of MAA 41 4.2.3 Passenger and Cargo Expectations 42 4.2.4 Privatization 42 4.2.5 Value Creation Potential 43

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4.2.6 Stakeholder Communication 43 4.2.7 Visualization Summary 44 4.3 Local Community 44 4.3.1 Perception of MAA 44 4.3.2 Nearby Airports 45 4.3.3 Nuisance 45 4.3.4 Future Scenarios of MAA 46 4.3.5 Reputation of Local Authorities 46 4.3.6 Key Perceptions about MAA 47 5. Analysis 48 5.1 Subject Impact 48 5.2 Aviation industry growth 48 5.3 MAA’s Dimension 49 5.4 Value Creation of MAA 50 5.4.1 Infrastructure and Accessibility 50 5.4.2 Socioeconomic Values 51 5.5 Political Influence 51 5.6 Potential Future Scenarios 52 6. Conclusion 54 7. Discussion 55 7.1 Practical Implications 55 7.2 Theoretical Implications 56 7.3 Limitations 57 7.4 Further Research 58 Bibliography 59 Appendices 63 Appendix A: Interview Questions Layout 63 Appendix B: Interviewees Politicians 65 Appendix C: GDPR Thesis Study Consent Form 66

Figures Figure 1: The Original Stakeholder Model by Freeman (1984) 15 Figure 2: Stakeholder Model - Adapted Version of Freeman (2003) 15 Figure 3: Adapted Theoretical Framework Model 23 Figure 4: Theoretical Implication Framework 56

Tables Table 1: Political Parties Overview 40 Table 2: Director Summary 44 Table 3: Inhabitants Quotes 47 Table 4: Politicians Overview 65

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Glossary and Abbreviations

MAA: Maastricht Aachen Airport MHAL region: Maastricht/Heerlen, Hasselt/Genk, Aachen and Liège LCCs: Low-cost-carriers SCBA: Social Cost and Benefit Analysis VVD: People’s party for Freedom and Democracy GroenLinks: GreenLeft party SP: Socialist Party 50Plus: 50Plus party PvdA: Labour Party PVV: Freedom Party

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1. Introduction

This chapter aids the reader to understand the background of Maastricht Aachen Airport (MAA), along with small and regional airports in general. Based on the background information, the purpose of the thesis, as well as the research questions, will be presented later on in the chapter. The thesis will focus on answering these research questions in a broad and academic perspective.

1.1 Background

Small airports have a great significance these days due to several factors and changes in the aviation industry. The tremendous growth of low-cost airlines has driven the development of secondary and regional airport terminals (De Neufville, 2008). Apart from that, the aviation industry in general has grown significantly over the past decades (Kupfer et al., 2016). Maastricht Aachen Airport (MAA) is an example of a regional airport and represents the primary role in this research. The aerodrome is located near Maastricht in the municipality of Beek, which is part of Limburg, the most southern province of the Netherlands. Lately, MAA has been a political issue in the Netherlands, partly due to noise complaints from people who live near the airport. Furthermore, regulations related to the runway and number of flights, which the airport is allowed to handle, have created a point of debate. Political interference also added up to the controversial continuity of the regional airport as well as its strategy, due to the financial involvement of the province.

The strategy of the point-to-point model rather than the hub-and-spoke model has influenced the development of regional airports in general (Fu et al., 2019). Due to the tremendous size of the aviation industry, it has become possible for people to fly directly from regional airports to their final destination, rather than having to fly between hubs. This phenomenon is the most recognized explanation of Boeing's success with their Dreamliner and Airbus’ failure in terms of the Airbus A380 (Reed, 2019). Airbus predicted the market to develop in accordance with people's desire of flying from hub to hub, while Boeing pursued to invest into the development of the point to point model. The investment arose, despite their major success with the Boeing 747 jumbo jet in the past, which served the hub- and-spoke model. The correct prediction of Boeing by developing mainly smaller planes able to fly long distances, aids in the existence of regional airports in general.

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Recently, MAA has been in the news in the Netherlands various times, since it is part of the aforementioned political issues. In 2014, the province of Limburg acquired the shares of MAA from the British private owner Omniport for a symbolic price of 1 Euro (Zakenreisnieuws, 2014). Earlier in the same year, the province prevented the airport from going bankrupt by aiding them with a financial injection of 4.5 Million Euros (Witteman, 2013). The interference of the province with the airport is a major point of discussion, as it raises the question of whether it is required by the province to keep an airport operating, with the local taxpayer’s money, rather than having the free market go its natural way. If the province had not aided the airfield, it would have most likely ceased to exist, due to bankruptcy. Hence, stating the fact that the province of Limburg and its political parties in charge are the major stakeholder force in terms of influencing MAA not only on its strategy, however, on its entire interpretation and future orientation.

Last year (in 2019) MAA moved 450,000 passengers, which is a growth of 60% compared to 2018. During 2018, MAA had a passenger outbound of only 275,000 travelers (Geussens, 2020). The amount of transported cargo in 2019 was 111,000 tons, which is similar to the amount of 2018. The cargo situation at MAA has a significant connection to the situation at Schiphol, Netherlands’ biggest airport. If there are no slots available at the airport, companies often switch during busy times or decide to move their operations (partly) to MAA or other regional Dutch airports (RTV-Maastricht, 2018). An arising phenomenon, due to the fact that Schiphol is leaning towards their maximum number of flights, forcing airlines to investigate alternatives nearby, such as MAA. Consequently, increasing the value creation of regional airports, not only for its own area, nevertheless, improving critical circumstances throughout the country.

In practice, most regional airports are not profitable. In fact, 70% of all airports throughout the world lose money (Airport-World-Magazine, 2013). Small airports are required to invest a huge amount of money, before they are even prepared to operate. After having invested the required amount of money, the demand depends highly on the airlines, providing them with a strong negotiating position (Huderek-Glapska & Nowak, 2016). Low-budget carriers often use this as a trump card in their negotiation position, in order to receive discounts on landing rights and utilizing necessary facilities of the airport. If an airline decides to switch from one airport to another, the financial consequences could be devastating for the corresponding airport. Especially in less densely populated areas, such as the one Maastricht

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is located in. It can be a challenge to operate an airport in a profitable approach, with regards to potential terrible negotiation positions. In the case of MAA, there is an additional barrier that results from its location and the fact that there are many other airports nearby: Brussels, Charleroi, Liège, Köln/Bonn, Düsseldorf, Weeze and Eindhoven airport. Another difficult aspect for MAA results from the fact that Liège (located only 40 km away from MAA) is open 24 hours per day and is allowed to handle cargo flights during the night. The airport of Liège has seen a major development ever since its focus shifted towards cargo aviation and increases to grow its total amount of tons transported each year (Orban, 2019). MAA does not have the option to execute flights during night time, in order to prevent nuisance for local residents. This harms the competitive position of MAA compared to other local providers. Furthermore, MAA’s runway covers 2750 meters, of which only 2500 meters can be used due to nuisance policies. In comparison to Lièges’ 3700-meter runway, this is a significant disadvantage, as a higher variety of planes are able to take off and land at this airport.

Since MAA and Liège airport are located so close to each other, a merger has been discussed in the past. In fact, the winner of the 1988-1989’s regional design competition of the MHAL region (Maastricht/Heerlen, Hasselt/Genk, Aachen and Liège) caused controversy at the time, by suggesting that MAA should merge with Liège airport at a location near Liège (Kempenaar et al., 2019). The main point of criticism arose from the Dutch province of Limburg, who demanded to operate the airport on Dutch territory, rather than only operating an option abroad. MAA is not considered as just an airfield in the region by some of the local politicians, but also as something that adds to the status of the region of Maastricht. Among some inhabitants of Maastricht, MAA is considered as a landmark (Brouwers, 2019). Having an airport near their habitat amplifies the connection and the pride of the region.

The relevance of the topic is significant, since there has been a huge growth of small regional airports throughout Europe, with budget airlines such as Ryanair operating for cheap prices. Mainly in Europe, airports used to be or still partly are military airports and have been undergoing a transformation in order to handle passengers that want to fly to other places (Cidell, 2003).

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The existence of MAA has been and still is a major point of political discussion. The provincial government of Limburg has decided, after pressure from the opposition of the parliament of Limburg, to execute a Social Cost and Benefit Analysis (SCBA). The opposition also wanted that potential closure of the airport would be investigated but provincial executive Joost van den Akker from the People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) has stated that only three scenarios for the future of MAA will be investigated. "One scenario is based on the airport's current growth rate and another on greater and optimal growth. The third scenario examines the variant in which there is less growth and the nuisance is limited as much as possible", according to the delegate Joost van den Akker (van Hoof, 2019). The provincial authorities have made the conscious choice not to investigate a possible closure of the airport, as it is not considered as a serious option. The argumentation provided amplifies that the airport is performing well and therefor there is no reason to research a potential closure of the airport.

As mentioned already, MAA is surrounded by other airports that are located in the Netherlands but also in Germany and Belgium since it is located so close to the border with these two countries. In the beginning of 2020, the national government started a debate about introducing air freight tax in the Netherlands. If this form of tax would actually be introduced, it would endanger the existence of MAA drastically since freight flights would likely move to other nearby airports that are just across the border where there are no strict freight taxes applied. This would endanger the jobs of more than 3,000 people that have a job at the airport or related to the airport of Maastricht (van Hoof, 2020). The provincial government of Limburg has contacted the national government about the disastrous effects a freight tax would have on MAA. The provincial government wrote that the 'current earnings model of the airport is at stake and that the jobs of thousands of employees are threatened' (van Hoof, 2020).

1.2 Purpose

As mentioned before, the current status of MAA involves a long history of political intervention. Judging from the recent development in politics, a majority of the politicians of the province of Limburg have the aspiration to keep the airport existing. However, it is important to attain an overview of the opinion of all the involved stakeholders. The diversity and complexity of airport stakeholders and their impact on, as well as from MAA, leads to

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the emergence of an independent research, which presents different perspectives and indications of motives, for each group of stakeholders. This provides a beneficial structure for the politicians of the province of Limburg as well as local companies and involved inhabitants to comprehend the future orientation of the airport and its value for the region. Current publications and news articles are mainly one-sided, indicating the need to provide an insight into the perspective of various politicians and their connection to varying political orientations.

The ongoing project of MAA stems from a lack of academic research in terms of stakeholder involvement as well as the value of the airport for the region. Thus, creating the drive of this thesis to collect primary data from involved stakeholder groups to elaborate their position within the context of value creation as well as stakeholder influence. Especially the focus on the political involvement as a directive force in the perspective of financial supporter as well as their influence on other stakeholders will be analyzed. A non-financial focus aids in creating a value proposition of the airport, rather than analyzing MAA solely on its fiscal report. This would create a fair overview of the current situation and could potentially raise new arguments from the stakeholder groups that have not been mentioned in previous articles or statements published, regarding this matter. These new arguments could then be used in the political debates about the strategic position of MAA and their use of the local airfield. The primary research conducted by the researchers will provide clarity about the whole subject and more importantly, indicate all the sides in an unbiased perception.

Another advantage of conducting unbiased primary research is that it is based on applying theoretical knowledge, rather than being practically involved. The literature review and theoretical model that will be presented in chapter 2 of this paper will aid to create a structured research that converts the whole situation into a broader perspective. Including information about regional airports, in general, as well as other trends in the aviation industry, the bigger picture can be sketched. All the primary and secondary theoretical data, will eventually aid to create rational arguments, rather than prejudiced arguments by inhabitants, parties or companies who have self-interest in the issue of MAA. Taken into consideration the aforementioned information, the following thesis purpose has been identified:

To generate a political oriented overview of perceptions and values related to Maastricht Aachen Airport that aids in determining the airport’s future by including various stakeholders of the MHAL region.

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1.3 Research Problem

The amount and the use of regional airports is growing nowadays, nevertheless, several struggle to be profitable. Given the situation of many small airports close to one another in a less densely populated area, creates a recipe for disaster. Though, this might be the case for MAA and their neighboring airports, it is thus not surprising that the local province is and has been financially aiding this particular airport.

The province of Limburg, with a reference to the majority of political seats, considers an airport as a valuable asset to the local area and thus have the aspiration to keep supporting the airport. Private investors have lost interest in the airport due to financial instability and other critical factors such as nuisance policies, on which they have little to no influence. Since March 2019, MAA is not allowed to use the complete length of the runway anymore, due to policies protecting the local residents. Other aforementioned disadvantages of MAA compared to their local competitors result in complications for the airport to operate as they command.

Ever since the acquisition of the province, the airport has been growing significantly. Nowadays, it is an important airport for Corendon Airlines as well as Europe’s most famous low-budget airline Ryanair, executing passenger flights from MAA. The influence of low- budget airlines is seen as a critical factor for small airlines. The relationship between regional airports and low-budget airlines has been difficult in recent years, due to unbalanced bargain positions during negotiations (Zuidberg, 2017). Therefore, smaller airports are required to seek other income streams, to strengthen their bargain power and their dependability of low budget airlines such as Ryanair. The cargo sector has the potential to aid in the aforementioned issue, and requires further research in order to reflect it to the case of MAA. As mentioned earlier, most airports are not profitable. Thus it creates the concern, whether the involvement of the local province in aiding the airport can be negatively perceived by the taxpayers of Limburg. MAA is a good example, indicating recent problems of regional airports, while dealing with regulations and politics created by the diversity of stakeholders involved, as well as their influence on the airport.

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Political focus is one of the key elements of the research problem, due to the fact that political parties exert influence on issues in dissimilar ways, leading to various perceptions on, and interpretations of the strategy of MAA.

1.4 Research Question

Based on the previously mentioned information regarding MAA, two research questions have been formulated covering the essential research focus. First of all, it is crucial to analyze the airport based upon its value for the region. This in fact emerges from the diversity of perceptions regarding the airport and aims to clarify whether the financial support executed by the province creates a base for criticism. The importance of a bigger picture, rather than a narrowed sensitivity generated by nuisance complains and related information streams, aids in evaluating the value of MAA for all involved parties. Another key focus, in terms of stakeholder influence, arises from the diversity and complexity involved in regional airports. The impact of MAA on the social and business level, determines a certain variety of stakeholders within the context of influential powers. Especially the focus of local provincial influence, executed by leading politicians on regional airports is yet to be analyzed, which is determined as a critical factor in times of increasing financial support for the aviation industry. Lastly, taken into account the consideration for the future orientation of MAA, which is determined by local authorities, elected by the general public of Limburg, the following research questions have been formulated:

1. How does Maastricht Aachen airport add value to its own and nearby areas? 2. To what extent does stakeholder influence, emphasizing on political orientation, affect the strategy of Maastricht Aachen airport?

The first research question aims to generate an understanding of the most critical factors motivating the thesis e.g. the value creation aspect of MAA for the region and correlating involved stakeholders. Following, the second research question adds on to the value creation of MAA whilst focusing on the influence that each stakeholder group has on the strategy of the airport. Due to the fact that the government is the main shareholder of the airport and thus in power to decide the interpretation of the airport as well as its operations capacity, a special focus of the research will be based on political influence. The structure generates a

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continuous flow, establishing information based on the former mentioned research question, in order to critically evaluate the circumstances affecting MAA.

The expected value generated by the research questions intents to clarify different insights concerning MAA with a neutral approach, which is not solitary financially driven. The feasibility is closely linked to its current impact, providing the research with several sources presently affected by or strongly linked to the airport and its nearby area.

1.5 Delimitations

The research is focused on gathering data and arguments from different stakeholder as defined by Freeman, which will be presented in Chapter 2. The researchers believe that the outline of Freeman’s stakeholder theory would be the best method to collect valuable data and to create a fair overview of the current situation of MAA. Based on the history and the lack of research about the aerodrome in question, there is a high variety of problems that could be investigated. The researchers, however, have decided to focus specifically on the stakeholders in combination with the added value of the airport to the close and nearby region. The history of the airport and potential critical financial strives by the management or the politics will be of a lesser importance as this paper will be focused on contemporary added value with a focus on the future orientation. Furthermore, it aims to close the academic gap of regional airport value creation in terms of diversified political emphases, that greatly influence not only MAA and their operations, moreover, the whole interpretation of MAA`s strategy.

The researchers have chosen to define the population of the research according to the Dutch Limburgian people living around the airport of MAA. One could argue that the people who live nearby in Germany and/or Belgium should also be included in the population since they are also affected by the airport’s routes, approaches and holds. Nevertheless, it is decided that for the significance of the research, the airport is a national and regional problem of the Netherlands. The research that shall be conducted will thus mainly be focused on Limburgian politicians, companies and residents. Despite national- and EU politics involvement in terms of basic restrictions and regulations for the aviation sector, the focus will be within the range of the province and its corresponding political system. This will ensure that the academic

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value is focused upon regional involvement, rather than in a broad spectrum for international larger hubs.

Rather than interviewing as many politicians, residents and companies as possible; the qualitative research will focus on gathering a variety of data. For the researchers it is of great importance to interview central, left- and right wing politicians, due to their diversity in perceptions of complications correlating to MAA. Furthermore, the research aims to contact residents and companies with a variety of views, rather than a high number of companies and residents that might share a similar view based on media focused biased perceptions. Variety is considered in the context of higher importance than quantity.

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2. Literature Review

The purpose of this chapter is to generate an overview of the existing literature about the beforehand mentioned focus of this master thesis. First, the aviation industry in Europe with a general emphasis on regional airports will be reviewed. Secondly an in-depth analysis of regional airports’ value creation in terms of infrastructure and accessibility, socioeconomics, will be provided. Following, with reference to Freeman’s stakeholder theory, all involved stakeholders are analyzed in accordance to their role and power influence for regional airports and their value creation characteristics. Lastly, Freeman’s stakeholder theory will be examined adding to understand the fundamental principal of this thesis.

2.1 Regional aviation development in Europe

It is commonly noted that the aviation industry and in general smaller airports play a significant role in the development of regional accessibility (Beifert, 2016a; Florida et al., 2015; Halpern & Brathen, 2011). The benefits of cargo possibilities and connectivity within countries as well as throughout Europe were leading attributes that added to an increasing number of regional airports in the past. Nevertheless, since the deregulation in the intra-European air transport market in 1997, the aviation sector is characterized by increased competition and aggressive pricing strategies (Lieshout et al., 2016) Especially regional airports in Europe are facing structural and operational challenges (Beifert, 2016a), contributing to a constantly increasing number of financial unstable airports, unable to reach an economical break-even point (ATG, 2002). Another key player in the development of competitive pricing strategies, responsible for heavily influencing the aviation market, can be linked to the enormous market gains by LCCs (Forsyth, 2007). The influence of LCCs on small and regional airports has grown significantly in recent years, as well as their potential to rapidly accelerate the air traffic of a given country (Huderek-Glapska & Nowak, 2016). LCCs strategies focuses upon flying from- and to less convenient airports that can be classified as secondary airports (Lawton, 2002), with cheaper adequate flight slots, in order to achieve the most convenient price for their end consumer. This demonstrates that the development and financial challenges for regional airports is closely linked to the bargaining power executed by LCCs (Huderek-Glapska & Nowak, 2016). Another important step in the aviation industry in Europe, with a focus on small airports, can be generalized as to the transparent and competitive pricing focus due to technological advancements. This in fact, provides the customers with a broader variety of possible flights and thus enhances competition among airlines and correspondingly airports.

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2.2 Dimensions of a small airport

The expression regional or small airport arises from its distinction to larger airports mainly in number of passengers or volume of freight transported (EC, 2005). Furthermore, divisions such as flight fares, flight times or access time (Hess, 2010) can aid in the classification as well as corresponding airplane types an airport is able to accommodate due to its landing strip layout. Another approach to classify airports in the literature is presented by (Malighetti et al., 2009), based on mainly domestic airports headed by main national hub with a low presence of low-cost carriers, or based on airports of different countries with a predominant presence of low-cost carriers. Despite general classifications, the cargo situation of an aerodrome can aid in analyzing and distinguishing different types or grouping of airports (Mayer, 2016). However, it is noted that for many airports, freight output is relatively unimportant, due to the fact that airports handle air freight throughout airline activities and thus stands only for limited impact on an airports economic performance (Graham, 2005). Furthermore noticed by (Sarkis & Talluri, 2004; Vogel & Graham, 2013) while clustering airports, the cargo business has only taken a minor position in the analysis part.

2.3 Value creation of a regional airport

The connection between airports and regional development has been noted by several studies. Especially the focus of strategic infrastructure linking the importance of air transport and connecting regions (Percoco, 2010), as well as their significant role in regional economic development influencing a wide range of factors (Florida et al., 2015). Nevertheless, it is also emphasized during several analyses that regional economic development heavily relates to the size and scale of the corresponding airport. Furthermore, while considerable research has been done in examining economic development for major cities, contribution of regional air service to non-metropolitan regional development outcomes has received only limited attention (Blonigen & Cristea, 2015). That being stated, it is difficult to precisely determine the economic development that an airport contributes to a region, due to the fact that they are more likely to be located in larger regions with corresponding economic parameters (Baker et al., 2015; Florida et al., 2015). The framework of (Malina et al., 2007) distinguishes regional economic development by: direct, indirect, and induced purchasing power generated by an airport’s activities. In this context, direct refers to the operations of an airport and resulting direct economic activities of businesses in the airport’s operational environment or employment. Indirect relates to the value chain of suppliers of goods and services related to

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the airports region and inducted effects are caused by consumption demand of direct and indirect airport employees. The companies at the airport are important consumers of intermediate and capital goods, which in turn lead to added value, employment and income for the producers of goods (Malina et al., 2007). Despite the aforementioned problematic relations and uncertain classifications, there are several factors that are affected by being part of the province of an airport and where a regional airport in particular has a value editing utilization. These factors can be classified as infrastructure and accessibility as well as socioeconomic proportions.

2.3.1 Infrastructure and Accessibility

It is an arguable point, if airports act as the primary facilitator of the regional growth, whilst providing accessibility and improving supply side components, or, if economic development has the result of determining a growing demand for transport service with an emphasis on air service (Halpern & Brathen, 2011). Nevertheless, regional accessibility is crucial nowadays not only for the mobility of people, nonetheless to enhance industrial bonded parks, warehouses etc. Regional accessibility presents in many cases the only gateway to bigger hubs (Beifert, 2016a), as many small airports are generally located in areas providing a limited infrastructure due to population size and resulting demand. Regardless the location, airfreight has the potential to improve regional and national accessibility through efficient connectivity to distant markets and global supply chains in a fast and secure manner (Kasarda & Green, 2005). An enhanced infrastructure has the potential of combining regional logistics services, creating efficient network of regional and interregional logistics service providers. Furthermore, accessibility is closely linked to the significance of air travel as it has a great impact on trade and commerce, which is superior to any other transportation mode for certain goods, considering time and security. The term travel time value has been analyzed extensively by (Merkert & Beck, 2017) in the context of regional aviation, arguing for passengers’ willingness to spend an additional amount of money with the assumed benefit of arriving faster. Especially business travelers are of importance for the continuity of a regional airport, due to time restrictions, emphasizing on air service as a crucial factor for regional communities and companies. Accessibility in the business context is noted to be of high importance with resulting time value assumptions, as in comparison to the leisure perspective, where it tends to be of secondary significance. Aside from the passenger perspective, accessibility and infrastructure are closely linked to air cargo. Customer preferences are fast changing and thus are requirements for ordered goods. The air service

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industry in cargo relations has been influenced by costly and light products that are to be delivered as soon as possible. Furthermore, air cargo has been identified as a crucial role for the survival of regional and small airports, due to the financial insecurities that result from focusing on the traditional view of an airport and the effort of passenger movement (Beifert, 2016b).

2.3.2 Socioeconomic

Socio-economic relates to the interaction of social and economic factors, creating an important factor in the value creation of an airport. Despite the obvious effect of an improved infrastructure, soft factors such as level of customer experience, level of value chain of suppliers and goods as well as level of sophistication in terms of operational effectiveness and quality of micro-economic business environment are to be recognized (Beifert, 2016a). Furthermore, the impact of a regional airport can affect local employment structures, regional labour market and thus general regional economic growth considerably. Labour supply through a regional airport affects the wealth and economic growth of a region, provides the possibility for job creation and employment and has the potential to positively influence education, human and capital development (Blonigen & Cristea, 2015; Brueckner & Girvin, 2008). Local residents benefit from a variety of economic growth factors that tend to be more difficult to measure or place into visibility as in comparison to accessibility and infrastructure. Those outcomes are often neglected, while analyzing the value creation of an airport, as other measurements such as financial impacts are easier to evaluate. Despite financial discrepancies, which occur for a variety of regional airports in Europe, it is important to recognize the positive effects created by a regional airport with a focus on the corresponding regional area and for example the service and high-tech industry (Brueckner & Girvin, 2008).

2.4 Airport Strategy

In a general approach, strategy can be classified as setting goals, parameters to determine actions, as well as resources required to achieve targets (Zhang, 2005). Within the context of airport strategy, considerations such as maximization in terms of airport systems and terminal capacity, optimization of operational processes as well transformation of cooperate structures can be applied. From a business perspective, strategy strives for development, with

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regards to airport strategy this development refers to an increase of existing capacity of terminals, runway systems or apron utilizations (Solak et al., 2009). Nevertheless, the growth aspect of an airport is reliant on several indicators that vary from investor capacities, government regulations to inhabitants’ nuisances. The optimization of operational processes is especially critical for regional airports while adapting to safety regulations in the aviation industry as well as in the development prospective to comply to airline specifications. In accordance with financial feasibility; accounting structures, cost assessments and budgeting are key elements in operational optimization (Fraport, 2017). The term cooperate structure in the aviation industry elaborates on privatization, which is vital for regional airports with a link to increasing financial insecurities and economical feasibilities as mentioned by (Beifert, 2016a).

2.5 Freeman’s Stakeholder Theory

Freeman’s stakeholder concept aims to create an idea to comprehend how a business genuinely functions. It is originally conceived as a strategic instrument for any business to broaden their vision of management (Fassin, 2009). The core notion of the stakeholder theory evolves around the concept of understanding that in order to be successful, a business has to create value for its customers, suppliers, employees, communities, and financiers including shareholders, banks and other monitory instances (Freeman, 1984). The theory emphasizes on the importance to consider each stake or stakeholder as a whole, instead of separating them and evaluating them from an isolated perception. Furthermore, it is the task of a manager or entrepreneur to analyze the interest of each stakeholder and realize common interests among the groups and how they align with each other. Each stakeholder group displays a significant portion of importance for the survival of a given organization or business. Simplifying the concept of the stakeholder theory can be expressed as for example; a business that has lost its connection to its suppliers, or a business that is facing complications with their workforce resulting in employees not willing to work for them with their full potential and is thus facing difficulties to survive. A special emphasis for managers should be the scope of attention in order to participate the direction of all involved stakeholders, without losing focus on a single entity. Furthermore, it is notified by (Freeman, 1984) that a single stakeholder unit is unable to create something, which the group as a combined unit could achieve, e.g. corporate stakeholder responsibility.

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Figure 1: The Original Stakeholder Model by Freeman (1984)

The stakeholder model represents a visual format to comprehend the stakeholder theory. The framework of the model illustrates visually the relationships among the various groups of actors in and around the organization (Fassin, 2009) The original stakeholder model, as seen in figure 1, has been modified by several researcher, including Freeman himself, focusing on internal and external factors to be applicable to more complex business situations. Figure 2 demonstrates that (Freeman, 2003) reduces the scheme to five internal stakeholders, and six external stakeholders.

Figure 2: Stakeholder Model - Adapted Version of Freeman (2003)

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2.6 Airport Stakeholders

Literature includes many attempts to classify stakeholders based on different attributes. A stakeholder in general refers to any individual or group that maintains a stake in an organization in a way that a shareholder holds share of a firm (Fassin, 2009). Another approach is provided by (Kaler, 2003), arguing for claimant and the influencer definition of what is perceived to be a stakeholder with the link to the original definition by (Freeman, 1984) arguing for any individual or group that is affected or can affect the achievement of an organization’s objectives. This research paper will focus upon the original definition with an emphasis on the airport objectives and the stakeholders that are being identified based upon the stakeholder theory as well as preliminary research. Despite the fact that many small airports are reliant on financial support from various sources, it is crucial to recognize their role in economic terms and for entrepreneurship growth in their regions. Accepting their own dependence on their corresponding regional prosperity will aid in the process to improve operational activities through a better coordination of relevant stakeholders (Beifert, 2016a). These relevant stakeholders are based upon Freeman’s stakeholder theory, leading to the following stakeholder groups being identified due to their position of affecting or being affected by MAA: Government, inhabitants, local companies, airport employees, airlines, competitors, passengers. All involved stakeholders are analyzed focusing on their power influence as well as their importance for the region and thus for the airport itself.

2.6.1 Government The government is one of the key players in terms of influence as well as importance for regional airports and airports in general. Due to the involvement of the Netherlands in the European Union, it is obligatory for the country to follow, as well as actively participate in proposing regulations and laws concerning the aviation security in Europe. The European Parliament and Council are responsible for proposing and specifying common rules and basic standards, which need to be applied by every airport throughout Europe nonetheless the size and type. These rules aim to achieve a common aviation security and monitor procedures and implementations. Regulation (EC) N°300/2008 of the European Parliament and Council states that every airport that engages in passenger fright is obligated to follow common basic standards comprising of e.g. a screening process for passengers, cabin baggage and hold baggage, as well as airport security checks and access control. Furthermore, each member of

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the European Union is obligated to propose a single authority for aviation security, in addition to an aviation security and control program (Council, 2008). These regulations demonstrate that even regional airports are greatly influenced by governments and are required to cooperate with local authorities to ensure all aviation securities are up to the newest standards in order to keep operating.

In some cases, the government of a country or a province can apart from being a regular stakeholder of an airport, also be an actual shareholder of an airport. This is also the case in the Netherlands. Provincial authorities in the Netherlands are the people's representatives of the province, they determine the policy of the province on the main points which includes spatial planning (Government.nl, 2020). In the Netherlands, the local provinces can thus have a great impact on the existence of a regional airport as it is a part of spatial planning. If the majority of the Provincial authorities are in favor of the existence of the airport they can provide an aid. Every four years, however, there are new elections. Dependent on those outcomes, the new majority might not be in favor of the regional airport anymore and decisions could be changed. In some cases, the airport can strongly depend on the will of the Provincial authorities. This can be due to the fact that the Provincial authorities are the main shareholder. On the one hand a new local government with other plans could mean the end of the airport. On the other hand, if the airfield manages to attract new, private investors to reduce the involvement of the government, the governmental involvement could be reduced.

2.6.2 Inhabitants Inhabitants are a vital stakeholder group that are greatly affected by aeronautical noise generated by airport operations and thus have an excessive influence power on the growth of air traffic and daily operations of an airport (Brueckner & Girvin, 2008; Mantecchini, 2016). Noise and carbon impacts are common problems in the airport development, as airports should be as close as possible to cities to enhance accessibility time, and on the other side as far from citizens as possible to minimize noise consequences. Despite technical advancements to mitigate the effects of noise and air pollution symptoms, local communities present the prime threat to enforce operational constraints. The dramatic growth in air traffic has contributed to an increase of nuisances, due to intensifications of flight slots required for passenger and cargo movement. Especially the late development of air transportation in the e-commerce sector, as well as the influence of LCCs (Zuidberg, 2017) and increasing flight

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slots for regional airports presents potential for inconveniences sides inhabitants. Noise complaints began in the 50’s with the introduction of jet engines. Nevertheless, noise cancelling mechanisms and technologies have been part of airline manufactures as well as airport outline development to mitigate noise impacts for local residents to a minimum. While comparing the noise generated from a Boeing of the year 1967 and a recent model, perceived take-off noise was limited to one-third (Brueckner & Girvin, 2008). Another critical factor for noise complain and nuisances’ sides inhabitants represents the intentions or actively participation in night flights. Many regional airports do not have the permission to operate during the night, more precisely during certain hours during of the night, which are specified by local authorities due to noise impacts. Not only regional airports are facing night flight issues, also European large airports such as Frankfurt had to investigate sleep patterns to determine if an extension of the airport and resulting night flights affect local residents and their noise perception (Basner & Siebert, 2010). Another essential part of inhabitants as stakeholder is their environmental pressure on local authorities. This relates mainly to negative perceived aspects of aviation in terms of air pollution, incidental soil as well as water pollution, waste generation with high share of hazardous wastes and change of landscapes (Jakubiak, 2015). Notwithstanding the nuisance resulting from regional aviation, it is important to present a regional airport in the perception of creating job opportunities and economic growth as explained in the socioeconomic part. These value creation aspects are profoundly affecting local residents as well and need to be recognized as they present reasons for the community to positively affects operations of airports.

2.6.3 Local companies There is a mutual interaction between local companies and airports in terms of supply of services and goods. Supply of services comprises the possibility of employing a skilled workforce from abroad due to enhanced connectivity, and vice versa being employed outside the regional territory. Supply of goods relates to the demand created or satisfied by local companies of an airport, improving national accessibility through efficient connectivity to distant markets and the possibility to connect to global supply chains in a secure and consistent manner (Beifert, 2016b). Another classification is provided by (Mayer, 2016), determining the relation between airports and air cargo in three sectors. Firstly, domestic consumption and catering for exports from the local area. Secondly, cargo for manufacturing processes of the region, and lastly air-to-air flow in case air freight needs to be transported

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to a region to which the corresponding airport has not direct connection. Air cargo is generally operated through larger aircrafts, cargo airplanes and charter airplanes, provided that larger airplanes can be accommodated. It is affected by and affects local business likewise, and is recognized to be vital factor for regional airports. The need for an effective cargo management is determined by the forecast of several researchers (Ison et al., 2011; Totamane et al., 2014) as well as recognized industry leaders, predicting that air cargo will continue to grow at an impressive annual average rate of 4,2% over the next two decades (Boeing, 2018). Especially on regional level of aviation with strong competition in the passenger traffic section, the air cargo market demonstrates great potential to create financial sustainability without being obliged to support by national or local public authorities (Beifert, 2016b). Local businesses benefit greatly by an improved accessibility through cargo possibilities, resulting from regional airports. Nevertheless, efficient positioning and appropriate strategies are required to fully integrate air cargo supply chains regional wise in order to yield benefits not only for stakeholders such as airports themselves or airlines, but also regional communities on an economic and social beneficial scale. Within the research focus of the Netherlands and their recognition as tulip exporter, it is also vital to mention that an estimated 80% of the international trade in cut flowers and meats, as well as 60% of all fresh fish is transported by air, while electronics account for around 40% of the total value of air freight (Kasarda & Green, 2005).

2.6.4 Airlines Airlines might present the most obvious stakeholder group, as an airport without any airlines would cease to exist. In the sense of regional airports, low-cost airlines and full-service airlines are to be analyzed, as being part of the stakeholder group. First of all, full-service carriers can be classified by the traditional view of airlines afore the institutional reform in Europe with deregulations and market integrations, that eventually introduced low-cost airlines such as Ryanair or EasyJet. The difference between those two airline classifications can be determined through the service offer component, where full-service airlines provide additional amnesties of flight entertainment, checked baggage, meals etc. Low-cost carriers on the other side limit flights to basic services, abolishing inflight service, entertainment, seat allocation and emphasize on low fares as main selling point (Barrett, 2004).The growth of LCCs and their market position has affected airports tremendously and resulted in several changes in the aviation industry (Clewlow et al., 2014; De Neufville, 2008). Low-cost airlines

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operate on a point-to-point basis, creating an interest in second city airports, as can be seen by the European cities London and Frankfurt with secondary city airports of Stansted and Frankfurt-Hahn (Barrett, 2004). LCCs have a critical position in the aviation industry as their policy in the bargaining process and resulting power over regional or small airports is decisive and resulting direct revenues cannot be compared to those of hub airports from full-service airlines. Nevertheless, if managed strategically the benefits for regional airports with excess capacity may be intriguing. As analyzed by Barrett (2004), LCCs have a strong correlation to deliver business even to virtually empty airports, as well as generate revenues from catering and shopping for services or an increase in car hires. The corresponding airports need to comprehend that LCCs can be an advocate for non-aeronautical profits as in comparison to full-service airlines that directly influence aeronautical revenues. Contemplating the aforementioned advantages as well as the fact that LCCs accelerate growth potential, relation management of LCCs is considered to be a critical factor for smaller airports while focusing on their future operations (Huderek-Glapska & Nowak, 2016). On the contrary, full-service airlines have a low-growth prospect within European routes, demonstrating risks for regional airports (Barrett, 2004). As can be seen by the airline examples of Swissair and Air Berlin declaring bankruptcy in 2002 and 2017.

2.6.5 Airport employees The stakeholder group of employees have a great influence on all daily operations of an airport, ensuring for instance; cooperation among airlines and ground personnel, scheduling time slots, or engaging in direct contact with passengers within different functions. The term employee in the airport context presents a numerous diversity due to the complexity of airport operations. Furthermore, they present the most important factor for aviation safety, operating through airport security in terms of baggage and passenger control scanning (Pettersen & Bjornskau, 2015). Security has a special meaning in the aviation industry, especially with reference to terrorist attacks in the past, leading to an evolution in airport security with an increase of personnel particularly trained to secure borders and scanning passengers (Hastings & Chan, 2013). There are no differences concerning regulations in the aviation security among regional or larger international airports. All airports engaging in passenger or air cargo freight are required to follow the rules as stated by the European Parliament and Council, and thus have to train their personnel accordingly. Despite employees related to the security of an airport, there a several jobs influencing daily processes

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such as mechanics, air traffic controllers, workers of the retail shops etc. Furthermore, considering an airport as a common business concept, various departments are presented in terms of finance, marketing or management. As stated by (Pettersen & Bjornskau, 2015), management of airports contain various challenges through complex organizational principals and systematic vulnerability influencing aviation security and flight safety. Thus, underlying the focus of competent employees in the management sector, due to immense responsibility and intricacy.

2.6.6 Competitors In a broad sense, competitors of airports can be determined by other modes of transportation, responsible for the movement of goods or persons. These modes include movement by rail, water or road (Coyle et al., 2016). Despite their specialities and benefits, movement of goods by ship or truck can be considered as contender for air cargo. Whereas, movement of persons, with a focus on Europe, can be equally achieved and thus clustered as competitor by train or emerging road transportation opportunities such as Flixbus or BlaBlaCar. These opportunities might be advantageous while traveling through central Europe, nevertheless, taking into consideration remote areas of north or east Europe, lack in terms of connectivity and time consumption.

Nevertheless, with an emphasis on regional airports, the competitiveness in the aviation industry will be limited to other airports regulated by size or other characteristically priorities in the customer orientation e.g. cargo specialization. The deregulation of the European aviation market has vastly increased competition among airports combining the possibilities of low-cost airlines and low-cost airports in order to gain market share from an already excising passenger pool (Barrett, 2004). Especially in times where low cost carriers are still growing faster than full-service network carriers, increasing their shares beyond economy class passengers to gain market share in the business sector (Linz, 2012). Competition of regional airports is closely connected to the point-to-point approach and major airports to the hub and spoke approach. Thus, symptomatically competitive advantages emerge, of for example: lower air fares, less waiting time due to size of corresponding airport, or longer surface journey times to city centers (Barrett, 2004). The development of secondary airports to demonstrate competition between low-cost airports and full-service airports, as mentioned in the airline stakeholder section, demonstrates that larger cities with large market

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share in passenger freight tend to attract the development of low-cost airlines. However, this also creates competition on the base of low-cost airports among each other’s, with a focus on gaining market share from major hub airports. Particularly in Europe, demonstrating a high density of airports for specific regions, leading to high competitive bargaining procedures for cargo and passenger freights.

2.6.7 Passengers Passengers are one of the most common stakeholders of an airport. Reflecting on the year 2019, 4.5 billion passengers have been transported from and to various airports throughout the world (ATAG, 2019). With the world population nowadays being around 7.8 billion, 4.5 billion is a tremendous amount of passengers. All of these passengers have the desire to travel in the best possible way to their final destination. As indicated in chapter 1, the point- to-point model, which suits with the strategy of regional airports is receiving more and more popularity. Small, regional airports could aid to transport people faster and more direct to their destination as they would not have to deal with layovers at hub airports. However, speed is not the most important factor. The value of travel time savings is something that passengers are willing to pay more for, especially in the business field (Merkert & Beck, 2017), or in terms of drastic improvements such as flying at supersonic speed. Nevertheless, disruptive changes in the sense of reintroducing supersonic travelling are highly unlikely to be seen any time soon at regional airports, due to technological requirements and regional airport layouts.

Since passengers are such a big group of stakeholders, it is important to keep them satisfied and continually analyze their needs. In coherence with inhabitants and possible noise regulations, airline passengers might be harmed by raising fares and potentially reducing service quality (Brueckner & Girvin, 2008). Other stakeholder groups can have a huge impact on the passengers and can, thus, dramatically change their whole travelling experiences. Airports attempt to use this in their advantage. As the airport operators seek to attract revenue from their passengers, they focus on designing their terminals in a way that passengers have to go through- or walk close to the shops located at the airports (Gupta & Venkaiah, 2015). The difficulty for the regional airports is to live up to the needs of the passengers. Due to the fact that regional airports operate on less space than international larger airports, it is of great value to investigate, how the airfields can generate the most

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revenue from the passengers. (Rahman, 2004) states that researching the customer’s needs is important to be able to create a competitive and sustainable advantage in comparison with potential competitors. Thus, it is especially vital for regional airports, that are located in an area with a lot of competition from other airfields, to analyze their potential situation. Competitive advantages of the airport services itself, could help to improve the customer satisfaction of their passengers and thus the image and functioning of the airport in general.

2.7 Theoretical Framework

The original theory of Freeman and the corresponding model are being used as the core concept of the theoretical framework. An adjustment of both the original and the adapted version of 2003, as mentioned in the literature review, will aid in creating an understandable guideline towards answering the research questions. The stakeholder theory of Freeman suits perfectly in designing a comprehension basis towards the value creation aspect of MAA, and thus generates a solid foundation for the empirical part of the thesis. The idea of the adapted model is to stimulate a single adjustment, which focuses on the political orientation of the airport and thus the research emphasis, displaying governments as a crucial influential factor/ stakeholder. Furthermore, it combines the fundamental issues addressed in the research questions by capturing the essence of both e.g. value creation and stakeholder involvement.

Figure 3: Adapted Theoretical Framework Model

The framework aids to present the visualization of connections among each stakeholder group as well as the government being the indicator of future directions and influence power,

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rather than an external stakeholder, as indicated by Freeman. Government and political orientation in the Province of Maastricht as well as throughout the Netherlands, are considered to be the major force, while deciding on airport operations. The airport is displayed as the primary originator with a visualization of a circle surrounding it, connecting all stakeholder groups, and presenting the assumption that each group is to some extent involved in the other groups. In that sense, local community has the potential to stimulate the passenger stakeholder group, provide employees, or influence competitor and airline frequencies. Furthermore, there is the prospective of individuals to be part of several stakeholder groups at the same time, indicating the requirement for a connection in the theoretical framework among the stakeholder groups.

The proposed theoretical framework aims to add in the process of generating knowledge that has been neglected in the literature. The focus within the context of value creation of the airport, proposes to present the information provided in the literature review and add to it through the empirical findings stimulated by the stakeholders of the framework. The significance of the stakeholders lies within their direct connection to the issue while being indirectly linked to political orientation through their democratic voting decision. Thus, aspiring to close the literature gap of value creation of an airport for the corresponding area not only through political emphasis, however, by additional information closely related to the MHAL region that have not been academically investigated. Furthermore, the acquired information will then be considered in a brought perspective to potentially state stakeholder influence on regional airports strategy within as well as apart from the Netherlands and the MHAL region to contribute to existing literature.

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3. Research Methodology

This chapter will provide the reader with an insight of how the research has been executed in order to work towards answering the research questions. First of all, the research philosophy will be elaborated, followed by research approach and data collection method and sample selection. Lastly, research ethics and data analysis will be discussed.

3.1 Research philosophy

Determining the most appropriate philosophy is a requirement for every academic research. Research philosophies include ontology – philosophical assumptions about the nature of reality, as well as epistemology – the study of the nature of knowledge (Easterby-Smith, Jackson & Thorpe, 2015). Out of the four different ontologies, the researchers decided that relativism is the most applicable within this research. Relativism states that there are many truths and that facts depend on the viewpoint of the observer (Easterby-Smith, 2015). This relates to the many different viewpoints of the different politicians of MAA, as well as stakeholder groups that will be addressed thoroughly in the interviews. In a complex case such as MAA, it would be a false approach to assume a single truth, nevertheless, it is also not completely based on opinions. The outcome of the study will mainly be of qualitative data, while it can contain to some extent, quantitative data in a numerical style. The epistemology that suits best with the thesis is social constructionism due to its focus on the way that people make sense of the world (Shotter, 1993) rather than measured through objective methods as is done in the positivism approach (Easterby-Smith, 2015). Relativism and constructionism usually fit together as there is a set link between epistemology and ontology. Since the viewpoints of the stakeholders in this research is a major point in the primary research, the perception on how they experience it, is more important than the information that can be investigated through thoroughly secondary research.

3.2 Research approach

The research approach that has been chosen for this thesis is of a deductive kind. Research that starts with a theory, usually developed from reviewing academic papers and literature, followed by a design and research strategy to test the theory, is considered as research with a deductive approach (Saunders, Lewis & Thornhill, 2007).

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For this thesis, the stakeholder theory has been chosen and partly adapted in order to get the desired match with the topic of this paper. The groundwork of this thesis, however, is the stakeholder theory, rather than in an inductive approach where one works from observations towards building an own theory. Concluding that this research is based on an already existing structure. The researchers have the aspiration to start from the pre-defined structure and base the data collection on the grounds of the theory. This in fact, will add to the theory and the research to work from the general approach towards the specific approach, which is common for deductive research (Saunders et al., 2007).

The deductive approach has been chosen as the best fitting approach with the subject and the politicians present a major role in this subject. The politicians are the most important stakeholder for the research and, therefore, receive the most focus. The primary data that will be collected from the politicians, together with the other stakeholder groups will help the authors to write a thesis that is built up from a solid proven academic base.

3.3 Data collection method

3.3.1 Secondary data Prior to primary research, secondary data had to be collected in order to gain more knowledge about the various subjects involved. This data forms the structure of the research and without this information, the research would have no pillars to stand on. The data is needed in order to know which gap to fill with primary data and, thus, what kind of primary research to execute in order to answer the research questions in a fulfilling way.

To generate comprehensive knowledge, the researchers have selected journals from various available databases such as web of science, Jönköping University Library, Google Scholar and ScienceDirect. Initially 50 articles have been chosen, however, as the thesis developed further, more articles have been added to the list, and some other articles that proved to be of less relevance, have been removed of the list. The research was executed by combining a variety of keywords which included among other terms: regional airports, local airports, point to point model, low budget airlines, low cost carriers, airport stakeholders, aircraft noise, economic profitability, local aviation and further synonyms to the aforementioned terms. Another relevance factor for choosing an article was the number of times it has been cited by other author to guarantee the most reliable and credible quality.

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After executing the above mentioned search, an extensive list of 50 available articles had been identified. These articles have been ordered in A, B and C tiers, with the latter being the most important towards the thesis purpose. A total of 3 C tier articles, 11 B tier articles and 36 A tier articles were acknowledged. Grouping these articles aided in providing a clear overview of available data and determining which of these articles could be considered the most interesting to examine and use as a quotation base throughout the thesis.

3.3.2 Primary data Based on the secondary data, primary data will be collected by conducting qualitative research. The qualitative research shall mainly be done by phone interviews, due to the fact that the researchers are based in Sweden and most of the target audience in the Netherlands. Semi-structured interviews will be used in a guided open interview approach, which suits with a selection of issues that need to be covered, however can be asked in a flexible manner (Easterby-Smith et al. 2015). The interviewees need to be able to adequately elaborate their thoughts, however, using an unstructured view would be too broad in order to cover the subject aspects that the researchers deem to be of relevance and necessity. The phone interview approach will be conducted with all politicians, the director of MAA and five inhabitants of the MHAL region.

Nevertheless, the significance of the airport for inhabitants of the region and their position with regards to MAA stimulated the researchers to investigate more in depth, despite the fact that there was a limit on how to approach inhabitants, due to the COVID-19 crisis. Thus, the researchers had to abandon their initial plan to visit Maastricht and conduct interviews face to face with inhabitants and creatively seek the input in a different manner. Through social media channels, it was possible to accurately locate inhabitants of the region and approach them to complete an online-interview, as proposed in the phone interviews with the five inhabitants as mentioned before.

In terms of target audience focus, the politicians of the province of Limburg are identified as the primary audience. This in fact, relates to the research questions as mentioned in the introduction and the focus on political orientation with regards to the MHAL region. In order to create a neutral approach with political views from various parties, interviews are conducted with right and left wing politicians to represent their opinion of the airport and aim towards fulfilling the research purpose. Apart from the politicians, other stakeholder groups that are to be interviewed include the director of the airport as well as local residents.

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With regards to the stakeholder theory of Freeman and the identified stakeholder groups of an airport as discussed in the theoretical framework, airlines and other competitors in terms of airports are not included in the primary data method. The reason for excluding those stakeholder groups, stems from the fact that the research focuses on political orientation of the MHAL region and thus implies no direct connection between those stakeholder groups. In contrast to local inhabitants and the director of the airport, airlines and competitors are in no position to vote for a political party of the region of Limburg, which diminishes their influential power with emphasis on political orientation. Furthermore, with regards to airlines and especially the focus of LCCs on regional airports, there is an extensive pool of articles that discuss and elaborate their position within the aviation industry.

3.4 Sample selection

Once the data collection methods have been chosen, it is necessary to investigate how the population will be sampled. From the various stakeholder groups, it is desired to gather data from people with different opinions. From the stakeholder group of politicians and inhabitants, it is interesting to interview people that have a positive or negative perception about MAA, in order to create a high variety of insights and arguments. This would not be applicable for every stakeholder group, due to the position of the director and his relevance for the airport.

In order to gather all the aforementioned data, the interviewees will be selected using non- probability, purposive sampling. Non-probability sampling has been chosen over probability sampling, as the people that need to be interviewed are required to be accessible and are not related to a selection by chance or randomness of any kind. It is not possible to state the probability of any member of the population being sampled (Easterby-Smith et al. 2015). This is due to the fact that the people who will be interviewed will basically be the ones that are accessible for the researchers to get in contact with. Apart from the accessibility, the researchers aim to receive input from politicians and groups with a variety of opinions. This strengthens the reason as to why purposive sampling has been chosen rather than convenience sampling. The authors have a clear idea of what sample units are needed (Easterby-Smith et al. 2015) in coherence with the use of purposive sampling. In case the researchers receive some referrals from the interviewees that they have contacted themselves,

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snowball sampling will be used in addition to the purposive sampling. This would be the case, if it would be too difficult for the researchers to get in touch with certain politicians or people with a certain view that has not yet been presented in the previous interviews.

Various methods such as LinkedIn, Facebook or online contacts will be used in order to reach the relevant stakeholders, however, most of the potential interviewees will be reachable from within the own personal and professional network of the researchers.

3.5 Research ethics

Prior to starting the research, ethical considerations have been made. The topic about MAA does not arise any ethical issues directly, however, working with other humans always include certain responsibilities. In order to assure that all the interviewees accepted the circumstances of the interviews being recorded and transcribed, several steps have been followed.

1. The interviewees have all been contacted via email to elaborate on the research topic prior to the interview, as well as information about the researchers themselves. As for the online-questionnaire for inhabitants, an information text before the questions stated the terms and conditions of the research. 2. A letter of consent has been written by the researchers that stated that the interviews would be recorded and transcribed and finally used as source for the actual thesis. The interviewees either had to sign this letter, or verbally state prior to the interview that they agreed. 3. Prior to the interviews, the interviewees have been sent the questions, so they had adequate time to prepare and understand the basic impacts of the topic. 4. Before the actual interviews started, any unclarities were discussed and solved prior to the official recording and starting of the interviews.

Since it is a recent topic and the perceptions on the topic highly vary, the researchers formulated the questions as neutral as possible. The interviewees could therefore answer the questions in a comfortable way, without being forced into a certain direction. Throughout conducting the interview, the interviewees had the possibility to cancel and withdraw their participation in the research. Apart from the politicians who have a public function, the interviewees remain anonymous and all their personal information remains confidential. The

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researchers decided that this would be preferable in order to make the interviewees feel comfortable enough to share their honest opinion without being judged at a later moment. Lastly, none of the authors have a conflict of interest regarding the subject or content of this thesis. It is worth mentioning that one of the politicians that has been interviewed for this thesis is the brother of one of the researchers. In order to avoid conflict of interest, this interview has been conducted by the other researcher.

3.6 Analyses of data

The collected data in the primary research of this thesis will all be of a qualitative nature. Once the interviews are conducted and all the information are collected, the data has to be analyzed. Since the qualitative interviews will mainly consist out of open-ended questions, an extensive amount of data has to be transcribed and analyzed.

In order to analyze the data that has been gathered from the primary research, the grounded analysis has been chosen rather than the content analysis. The main reason for choosing the grounded analysis is that it is generally more exposed towards new discoveries. The opinions of the politicians on a diversified topic such as MAA can be very extensive and it is important to analyze the data as open minded as possible. Despite the fact that grounded analysis is used more frequently in inductive research and content analysis is used more often in deductive research, the authors have chosen that it suits more adequately related to the subject of MAA in terms of value creation and political orientation.

The common seven steps of the grounded analysis will be followed, starting by the familiarization. The interviews that will be conducted will all be recorded and transcribed after. By using this method, no valuable data will be neglected and the interviewers will be able to completely focus on conducting the interviews rather than being concerned about transcribing the data during the interviews. Once the familiarization step has been executed, the reflection of that data can start. At this stage it is important to investigate the core statements of data provided by all the interviewees and how much they differ from each other. Once this step is completed, the open coding can start. In this phase it is vital that the researchers create a link between the overload of data that has been gathered. The next stage concerns conceptualization and aims to discover patterns in the codes that have been identified in the previous stage. Once this has been finalized, the authors can engage in a focused re-coding, in order to identify the most important codes for the subject of MAA.

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After this phase, the researchers can start the linking stage, which aids to create explanations clearer, as certain patterns will have developed. Lastly re-evaluation will be executed, to prevent any errors, and add to the coherence of data. Usually the codes correspond to categories, which on their turn refer to themes and concepts that aim at building a theory. However, in this case it will not build towards a theory as it will aim for the main viewing points regarding the whole debate around MAA.

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4 Empirical Findings

The empirical findings consist of three major parts that include politicians, the director of MAA and the local community as a whole. In accordance with the interview questions as can be seen in the appendix, a thoughtful description and summary are provided in the following section.

4.1 Politicians

A total of seven interviews were conducted with politicians from several parties of the Provincial State of Limburg. The interviews have been conducted with politicians from six different parties. The only party that was represented twice throughout the interviews is the VVD (People’s party for Freedom and Democracy). This is due to the fact that the deputy, who has MAA in its portfolio, is part of this political party. It was concluded to be of high value for the research to have both interviews with the deputy and a regular member of states.

4.1.1 Political parties’ view on MAA The political parties that have been interviewed are divided within their views. The parties that are the most positive towards the airport are the governing parties PVV and VVD. The rest of the parties that have been interviewed for this research are part of the opposition. However, they do not all share the same opinion regarding this matter. The party that was the most negative in the interview about the existence of the airport is GroenLinks. The green and left party is in general not in favor of airports and states that the airport does not have any added economic value to the region of Limburg, and therefore should not exist. The remaining parties SP, PvdA and 50Plus, had a slightly different opinion regarding this matter, but were not particular positive or negative about it. The SP representative mentioned, that it is convenient to have a local airport, nevertheless, not of essential matter. The interviewee of the 50Plus party mentioned, that the airport does not necessarily have to close, but it should also not obey to less restrictions than it currently does. Lastly the PvdA representative specified that the airport does not automatically have to close, however, there should be an indication of keeping the airport open with the least possible damage to the environment around it. Furthermore, the interviewee mentioned several times that all possible options of a Social Cost and Benefit Analysis should be taken into consideration, including a closure of the airport. Only if all possible scenarios are investigated, a well- structured opinion about the airport’s existence could be provided.

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4.1.2 Provincial aid for MAA The politicians have been asked to share their thoughts regarding the influence of the province on MAA. In this part it will be discussed whether MAA would even exist if it was not for the aid of the province, but also what the influence of the province is on the functioning of the airport.

4.1.2.1 Existence The influence of the Provincial States on the existence of the airport is vast. All the politicians that have been interviewed agree on this matter. The respondents of PVV, PvdA and SP even stated that the airport would not exist without the critical aid from the province. GroenLinks mentioned that the influence is certainly routed by the fact that the majority exists of right-wing parties at the current moment. Since these parties have chosen to invest a vast amount of money into the airports infrastructure, it is also more difficult to terminate the support.

4.1.2.2 Functional PVV stated that the functioning of MAA is largely determined by the government due to the rules and regulations that they can define. The VVD elaborated further that the national government has a large influence because of the NOx (Nitrogen Oxide) emission crisis the Netherlands is currently facing. This is very likely to affect the whole airline industry and if the planned air traffic taxes will actually be introduced it could be catastrophic for MAA, since it is so close to other airports in Germany and Belgium where such rules do not apply. VVD also stated that on the day-to-day business of the airport it does not have much influence. SP, GroenLinks and 50Plus indicated it is hard to specify exactly what the influence of the Provincial States is on the functioning of the airport but also consider it can have a certain influence that does not necessarily have to be decisive. GroenLinks mentioned that they could at least attempt to make it attractive for private investors. The interviewee of the PvdA stated in a very broad answer that the influence of the Provincial States on the functioning of the airport is immense, nevertheless, that it is very complicated at the same time. The Provincial States control the deputy, and the deputy is part of the GSM (General Shareholders Meeting). Thus, the politicians monitor the deputy, who is also a politician, but

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at the same time also part of the GSM. In case there is a hassle with the management of MAA, the politicians can intervene by examining on the deputy.

4.1.3 MAA’s Financial Prospect The interview question regarding the financial situation of MAA is something that has also been a point of debate in politics. The answers among the interviewees differ quite a lot regarding this matter. According to the PVV, MAA should strive for profit but if the airport can achieve a break-even point then that is already sufficient since the airport has a broader function than just monetary sides. What the cost of this may be is up to the provincial states to decide. The VVD states that the airport has financially been doing well over the past few years and that the demand of freight transport is growing. However, there are restrictions such as the shorter runway and the night closure of the airport, which is definitely in favor for the inhabitants of the region. The airport could be profitable without any restrictions, but the livability of the area should also be taken into account. The party mentioned, that the airport is part of a vital infrastructure for the region. The PvdA stated that it is difficult and unfair to compare with other nearby airports like Eindhoven and Liège. These airports are military airports and the maintenance is paid for by the Department of Defense. MAA is not a military airport, thus in terms of financial stability it is unfair to consider these costs due to imbalanced comparison factors. The party states that more money has already been invested than initially planned and that the politicians as representatives of the people of Limburg have to question themselves, if this money could not have been invested in a more sufficient matter. The government will need to provide subsidy in order for the airport to keep operating. 50Plus stated that they consider the airport to be not profitable with all the restrictions, but also that they are in favor of these restrictions. The airport provides the area with job opportunities which is what compensates for the losses. The SP interviewee stated that he has double feelings due to the corona crisis. Without the crisis the market could be too aggressive to be competitive for the passenger market, but not as much for cargo which is MAA’s strength. Nevertheless, once the pandemic is over, air travel will very likely be re- evaluated by the government and public opinion which could create a beneficial state of air travel in general to be more profitable for society. Thus MAA could be profitable, since the airport would not need all the subsidies. Finally, there is the respondent of Groenlinks who stated that it depends a lot on the circumstances and how they develop. The action groups against the airport might have some influence on the decisions of the deputy regarding the

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airport’s future. Also the Social Cost and Benefit Analysis will provide more insight when it is fully completed.

4.1.4 Hypothetical Scenario The politicians were asked about the hypothetical scenario that the airport would cease to exist and what this would mean to the region according to them. GroenLinks and SP both mentioned The European Fine Art Fair (TEFAF) as one of the major events that could be affected by this. The airport is relevant for this event as most of the audience are mainly transported via MAA. The SP also mentioned that it does not interfere as much for tourism, since the passenger flights from MAA are mainly outbound flights of people who proceed to their holiday abroad, rather than people who would like to visit Limburg. However, in terms of cargo, there would be an impact because the companies related to cargo that are situated around the airport rely on MAA and if the airport would cease to exist or limit its current operating capacity, this would influence these companies too. GroenLinks stated on their behalf that people who depend on the airport for work, would ultimately seek another occupation. Research from 2014 indicated that most entrepreneurs in the region do not depend on the existence of MAA so the impact would not be that significant on those companies if the airport would cease to exist. 50Plus stated that if the airport would not exist, jobs would be lost, thus innovative ways and creative measurements of some kind of new industrial area would have to be implemented to compensate for the loss. The PvdA proposed that parts could adapt to a natural arsenal, a sustainability park could be adapted or potential space for housing. In order to provide valuable arguments about the economic consequences, a complete SCBA that investigates all the possible scenarios is needed. The interviewee of the PVV stated that without MAA, Maastricht would really be a provincial city and the region would be a rural region. An own airport stimulates a certain allure and the presence of the airport offers extra perspectives for companies that are internationally oriented. Lastly, the politicians of the VVD mentioned that a lot of logistic companies in fact account for due to the existence to MAA. They also mentioned that the pressure on the highways would be greater due to the fact that cargo has to be transported via other airports that are located further away from the Maastricht area. Furthermore, in terms of cargo, it would have consequences for the flowers that are flew into MAA for further transport to Aalsmeer. This proceeds faster at MAA than at Schiphol, thus for the flower business it would be very inconvenient.

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4.1.5 Infrastructure and Accessibility The politicians have been asked to elaborate their opinion about MAA in terms of infrastructure and the accessibility for the region. The interviewee of GroenLinks stated that it would be better if the airport disappeared, as it would create pressure to invest in an enhanced railway network. SP stated that the airport is less important for the region and also pleaded for investments in the railway network. This could potentially result in a lot of flights within Europe to be unnecessary as they would be reachable just as fast by train as by air travel. Furthermore, the travel would be more convenient in a train than in a plane as the people could enjoy the beautiful scenery on their way. 50Plus agreed with the argument that the airport does not add that much value for passengers or inhabitants, however, mentioned that the importance results from job creation and cargo handling. The PvdA stated that the airport aids in terms of accessibility of the area but it does not provide direct connections with major hubs such as London for example. Furthermore, not that many tourists are visiting Limburg via MAA. The PvdA also indicated that the region could very well do without the airport and also added that they are in favor of investing more money in railways so freight could be handled more by rail than by air. The only two parties that do consider MAA as an important part of the regional infrastructure are the governing parties PVV and VVD. According to the PVV it improves the connection of the region with more distant areas. The VVD stated that operating an airport is an important USP for major events like TEFAF or André Rieu concerts as well as its appealing factor for businesses to develop in an international area in the center of Europe. In terms of infrastructure, it is mainly important for the handling of freight, nevertheless, to embrace a certain infrastructure, public transport connections to the airport are considered to be improved in the future.

4.1.6 Perception of MAA The interviewees have been asked to mention some positive and negative aspects of MAA in their personal opinion as well. This is regardless of the opinion of their political parties and aids to gain insights in the major arguments in favor for- and against MAA.

4.1.6.1 Favorable Every spokesperson during the interview was able to provide at least some positive sides of the airport, however, the party that had the most trouble to indicate a positive argument for MAA was GroenLinks. The politician of this party in particular that has been interviewed

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stated that the biggest advantage of the airport is that it provides job opportunities to a couple of people, however, also mentioned that it is not the work they would like them to perform. PvdA mentioned that the cargo handling at MAA is the most significant strength of the airport. However, that it is difficult to determine whether this is really true because it lacks in-depth research. SP stated that it is convenient for companies to have their cargo handled nearby their location and also that it is convenient for the people of the region to proceed to their holiday destination from an airport which is fairly close by to their homes. 50Plus stated that the free parking at the airport and the size of the airport are the biggest advantage, as it creates easy access for people to go on holiday from such an airport. Another positive argument that was mentioned, referred to the quick cargo handling of the flowers that are transported from MAA to Aalsmeer.. PVV stated that the airport provides 3300 direct and indirect jobs for the area and that the airport also inherits a good image for the area. Furthermore, they mention that it is convenient for recreational and business travelers. The VVD, lastly, mentioned that the airport aids to the economic growth, which is partly due to their quick freight handling. Another advantage is that the country is not that highly dependent on Schiphol in terms of cargo handling, due to MAA. Additionally, another advantage refers to the corona crisis and the fact that one should not completely rely on open borders with Belgium and Germany, which highlights the importance of operating an airport on Dutch territory in the form of MAA.

4.1.6.2 Critical The main point of critic on the airport that has been mentioned by all the interviewees is the nuisance it causes for the local residents. A side note to this is that the PVV mentioned that it causes noise for only “a few local residents”. Their answer had a bit more nuance than the other parties, but in general all of the parties agree that it causes nuisance for the local residents. PvdA and GroenLinks also mention the air pollution and negative effects it encompasses on the nature. Furthermore, The PvdA states that this is a national problem and might cause problems for MAA in the near future. GroenLinks also stated that they do not agree with the tax money that is supporting MAA, and that according to them the money could be better invested in green projects rather than an airport. The VVD mentioned that another disadvantage relies on the fact that the airport only has one runway, thus it is dependent on certain weather conditions in its functioning. The SP politician also mentioned that low-budget airlines such as Ryanair that only cooperate with an airport under certain

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circumstances in their favor e.g. monetary wise, are not beneficial for the economic health of the airport.

4.1.7 Comparison to other airports The politicians have been asked if they think that an airport in Maastricht is necessary, in consideration to the fact that there are many other airports in the region. The PVV stated that the airport provides jobs and also that the airport is in compliance with Dutch laws and regulations, thus within the control of the Netherlands rather than another country such as Belgium or Germany. The VVD and the PvdA provided the same argument regarding the jobs. The PVV and VVD also stated that it is favorable to have a nearby airport for recreational flights and holidays. Furthermore, VVD argued that people do not realize the importance, with regards to operating a cargo airport nearby, considering all the products that are ordered online from distant places such as China for example. Another added value of the airport is represented by the export of products that are produced in the Maastricht area and then delivered through MAA. 50Plus, SP and GroenLinks share a common opinion that the airport is simply not necessary, and if the airport would cease to exist, it would hardly be missed. 50Plus states that residents of Limburg can effortlessly fly from another airport, and that in fact people usually fly from other airports anyway, since it is usually cheaper to fly from an airport in Germany than it is to fly from Maastricht. SP also stated that people can just defer to one of the other airports nearby, at any time given. GroenLinks mentioned some general arguments against air travel and argued that there should be more incentives to travel by train rather than by plane. In fact, VAT taxes on plane tickets in general provide one of the possible solutions to create those incentives. The PvdA is neutral in this matter. The interviewee stated that most people in the area notice only limited positive effects of the airport, however, she also stated that the information are only be reflected upon the MHAL region and not with regards to the Netherlands as a whole. The provided estimation reflected on the importance of the airport, however, that it could also be solved in another way. The general opinion of the interviewee suggested that some parties consider the airport as a kind of status symbol and that one needs to wonder whether it is worth the tax money, just for the fact of operating an airport nearby. The point is that a full SCBA has to be completed in order to provide a well based meaning. If the outcome of the research for example states that MAA’s freight could not be handled at the other nearby airports, there is a solid argument to remain the airport as it is now or even consider other options. Nevertheless,

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since the governing parties refuse to investigate this option, it is a very complicated situation to provide a well based opinion or argument regarding the subject.

4.1.8 Additional Government Measures Besides economic and financial aid, there are other methods that the provincial parliament can ensure to support MAA, without neglecting the local residents and the ambition to reduce nuisance. The politicians were inquired to elaborate their thoughts on what they think the local politics could do for the airport and the community.

50Plus states that there are certain restrictions in action at the current status, as can be seen by the example that only a part of the runway can be used. If the complete runway could be used, it would improve the competitive position of the airport, as it were to handle flights to further destinations and planes that are fully loaded. Nevertheless, these kind of measures would not be beneficial to the inhabitants who live around the airport in terms of nuisance. Thus, 50Plus would prefer to maintain the airport the way it is right now. The interviewee of PvdA states that the local politics are not allowed to support the airport in every possible way due to EU regulations regarding subsidies that distort competition. The politician also mentioned that the province is already doing more than enough to aid the airport and that she would not be able to specifically determine further ambitions in addition to the already existing aid of the province. VVD elaborated that a lot of indirect help could be provided by proper branding and a guarantee that the existence of the airport is ensured. They also mention that the national politics should not arrange taxes on air freight, as this would result in an unfair advantage for the nearby German and Belgian airport over MAA. GroenLinks stated that the people who live nearby the airport will be aided by flights at more convenient times with regards to night flights and the sleeping patterns of inhabitants. Furthermore, GroenLinks believes that the airport attracts potential customers already by the free parking possibilities. The SP interviewee stated that a collaboration with the local tourism offices might aid to create more inbound traffic of people who would like to visit Limburg. At the moment, the flights from MAA are mainly outbound passengers. Lastly the PVV stated that the local politics can help by ensuring a sufficient infrastructure, nonetheless, that no unnecessary or too restrictive measures should be enforced. Additionally, the provincial state of Limburg should also demonstrate a more positive attitude towards MAA.

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4.1.9 Political Party Overview The following table aids in visualizing all parties involved in the research as well as their political position within the Netherlands and their view on the airport.

Political Party Political Position/ View on MAA Ideology

Positive, the party desires the airport to exist and Centre-right, Conservative & Economic anticipate possibilites, with minimum nuisance for the liberalism nearby inhabitants.

Left wing, Green politics and social democracy Very negative, it should cease to exist.

Left-wing, democratic socialism and social Slightly negative, there are advantages, however, the democracy airport does not add much to the local infrastructure.

Neutral, it can exist the way it is now as it creates jobs, Centre, Pensioners ’interest and Identity politics altough it should not be expanded.

Neutral, the party demands a full SCBA that analyzes all the options before they can provide a complete view. Centre-left, Social democracy The party does not think that the airport has to close, however, certain aspects have to change.

Right-wing, Nationalism and right-wing Very positive, the airport has many benefits while the populism disadvantages are limited.

Table 1: Political Parties Overview

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4.2 Director of MAA

In terms of expertise, the director of MAA has been chosen to be of superb quality of information, representing the airport itself in addition to the employee section in some instances, as identified in the theoretical framework of chapter 3. Due to the position in line with valuable information regarding the airport and government communications, the interview has been acknowledged to be a decisive aspect of the empirical findings. Throughout the thesis, the director has been chosen to be the representative of the employee section as his importance and position within the research subject is highly related to the aspiration of employees to maintain their jobs, which relates to the existence of the airport.

4.2.1 Government Influence Based on national significance, the government presents a great deal of influential power on rules and regulations. The ministry of infrastructure and water management (INW) has the authority to determine opening hours as well as the degree of noise and space restrictions. Thus, indicating a great deal of affecting potential development components for airports of national importance. There is a total of six airports, throughout the Netherlands that are of national importance including MAA, Rotterdam, Eindhoven, Lelystad, Groningen, and Schiphol. In regards of ownership, all airports in the Netherlands are government owned and thus required to follow certain decisions influencing operational activities as an example. As for MAA, the province of Limburg has the exploitation and ownership, due to the fact that they represent the shareholder of the region.

4.2.2 Financial Stability of MAA In general, the financial stability of MAA is estimated to be of solid potential, as the density of national airports that are of significance is limited and thus are airport infrastructures. Nevertheless, the financial situation of MAA depends on several external factors, despite the governmental influence as a main contributor. The current COVID-19 crisis is an excellent example demonstrating a considerable pressure on MAAs financial stability as well as the fact that it hinders the aviation market to develop further. However, if the government continues to remain from intervening in the spatial development of MAA, the airport has a great economic prospective, due to the fact that it is one of the few national significant airports that has the possibility of continuing to develop.

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4.2.3 Passenger and Cargo Expectations In coherence with the development of passenger numbers worldwide, the prospective of increasing growth figures in this section can be projected to MAA. Another indicator for a prosperous passenger expectation arises from the fact that Eindhoven, Rotterdam and Schiphol are reaching maximum capacities. This indicates the significance of regional airports with MAA’s impact of passengers from the Limburg region and potential preferences due to accessibility, convenience or lower waiting times. In a general approach, the cargo situation of MAA has a great potential to grow which is connected to the processing time of service and quality, working morale, and the scale of operation handling. Nevertheless, there are several external factors that might hinder or prevent the cargo situation of MAA. First of all, an introduction of airfreight tax would result in an additional financial disadvantages because MAA handles mainly aircrafts that are completely cargo oriented. In contrast, Schiphol as one of MAA’s main competitors operates mainly combi-planes, which include cargo in the belly of the passenger airplane, and thus would not be directly affected by the airfreight tax. Another influential factor for the cargo situation of MAA, can be determined by the relatively high kerosene costs. In comparison to other competitive airports such as Liège or Schiphol, the airport of Maastricht does not operate a fuel pipeline, which results in higher fuel costs related to transportation methods. Lastly, the night-time closer regulation in combination with the restriction concerning the set-up of the full runaway, is another aspect that creates severe limitations on the cargo expectations.

4.2.4 Privatization The development of space operation potential is a decisive criterion in determining the privatization prospective of MAA. Due to several rules and regulations, that are established by the provincial council, concerning air movements, opening hours etc. the incentive for a private investor is limited. Nevertheless, privatization is not of essential substance for the operations and long term orientations of MAA. As a matter of fact, the exploitation has been in the hands of a private party from 2016 – 2019, with the province of Limburg being the owner of infrastructure etc. Currently the exploitation, however, remains in government ownership. It is important to note that there is not a single airport in the Netherlands, which is solely privately owned, and that the government will always be involved in providing adequate infrastructure, fire brigade as well as security and safety measures.

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4.2.5 Value Creation Potential In the perspective of cargo interpretation, MAA has a significant contribution to employment and gross regional product which relates to monetary measures of the market value of all final goods and services produced in MHAL. Furthermore, the airport creates a certain appeal to companies to establish a business in the vicinity of MAA, due to its recognition as a logistical link. The connective potential is a vital factor in the decision- making-process. In terms of accessibility and infrastructure, MAA represents a great contributor for the Limburg region that entails a certain prospective to increase even further, if connections to major business communities such as London, Frankfurt etc. are thoroughly established. Another value creation aspect evolves from MAAs greatest strength related to its fast handling in terms of passengers and air freight. Due to the fact that the airport still remains with a lot of handling and operation capacity, businesses can profit time-wise.

4.2.6 Stakeholder Communication The diversity of an airport inherits the requirement to interact with a great deal of different stakeholders. The most important one is presented by the local community. This group includes surrounding businesses from the region as well as local residents. Nevertheless, there are stakeholder groups that might not be as obvious, for example the tourism sector, the GGD (public health department), air traffic control, or social media supporters. In general, communication of the airport is executed by providing up-to-date information on developments and potential scenarios including the airport itself. In addition, there is an open channel interaction with the Maastricht Regional Consultation Committee, which includes the business community and local residents. The communication between the provincial government and the airport is characterized by weekly intensive meetings as they represent an important stakeholder and main shareholder. The same procedure is applied to airlines concerning their satisfaction, sides customer and airlines themselves, as well as possible expansions of destinations.

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4.2.7 Visualization Summary Table 2 aids to summarize the major statements of the director in regards to the interview questions asked and present a visualization of the most vital aspects.

Government Influence All airports of national significance are government owned and thus obliged to their influential power

Financial Stability Potential for growth with regard to developments in the aviation industry

Expectations Importance of cargo flights

Value Creation Potential Appealing for potential companies and strength of having remaining operation capacity

Table 2: Director Summary

4.3 Local Community

The local community provides a valuable insight into different considerations and aspects concerning the interpretation of MAA. Furthermore, it aids to comprehend various assessments and displays a rather skeptical stakeholder group consisting of inhabitants and local companies towards the prosperity of the airport.

4.3.1 Perception of MAA The perception of MAA varies among the local community greatly, as it is a highly sensitive topic for many inhabitants that inherits a lot of meaning and impact. On the one hand, it is seen as a vital factor for accessibility that enhances the local economy, on the other hand as a prestige project by the province. MAA’s recognition as an advocate for employment possibilities for the region and its surrounding areas stands in contrast to the perception that it has to compete with other larger and regional airports in its direct vicinity. In terms of added value for the region of Limburg and its surroundings, the airport is appreciated as a valuable asset that creates business opportunities with a link to air cargo and passenger freight. Furthermore, its appreciation as a landmark and connection to the tourism sector creating a favourable situation for the future has been indicated. Nevertheless, there are also critical opinions that evaluate the added value of the airport as limited, due to the fact that its location is too close to the residential accommodations and thus interferes with their daily

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lives. Additionally, the financial situation of the airport is perceived to be questionable, which hinders a full potential of added value.

Another aspect concerning the perception of MAA includes its usage experience. There is a great deal of inhabitants from the region of Limburg who have had a flight from or to MAA or other related matters such as picking someone up. The general perception includes a pleasant experience with a favourable parking situation as well as short waiting times throughout the whole process of checking in. Moreover, the convenient factor of proximity and friendly staff is recognized.

4.3.2 Nearby Airports The location of MAA has been critical evaluated by many inhabitants. Due to the fact that the airport is located within a circle of many other larger airports such as Liège, Eindhoven, Düsseldorf etc. the financial stability is questionable. Some of the inhabitants indicated that the high density of airports inherits a potential to be concerned about. Nevertheless, it is also recognized by a great deal of respondents that the aviation industry is a fast growing sector and that the number of passengers and cargo is expected to raise in the future. Furthermore, the interpretation of each airport and its own specialty creates a balanced demand.

4.3.3 Nuisance The nuisance perception is a critical subject throughout the research. On the one hand, it is indicated that the noises created by the airport are hardly disturbing despite living near the airport or within its approaching route. On the other hand, there are inhabitants who perceive it as the main threat created by the runway extension of the airport and that the nuisance is constantly creating a restriction on their quality of life. The nuisance complains, however, are indicated among various inhabitants and opinions about it differ strongly. Nevertheless, it is also specified that night restrictions are supportive in avoiding nuisance and that other components such as the highway create more disturbing noises due to its frequency and constant usage.

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4.3.4 Future Scenarios of MAA The potential scenario of an extension of the runaway or night time flights are seen from diverse aspects and opinions throughout the local residents. The potential increase and full usage of the runway is recognized as an economic advocate that theoretically influences various aspects of the economy such as the tourism sector or employment. Furthermore, an increase of the runway is associated by local inhabitants with the possibility to operate flights to other destinations, due to a higher attractiveness of airlines and possibilities to handle larger airplanes. Nevertheless, there are also local residents that perceive it unnecessary to extend the runaway and that the airport should operate on its current range, or moreover from a critical point of view to stop operating at all.

4.3.5 Reputation of Local Authorities The effort of the local government is evaluated by the local community from different aspects and views. First of all, there is a general agreeing that the government is working in the interest of the inhabitants, which supports to improve the quality of life and to aid in certain critical subjects. One of those critical subjects is the airport as inhabitants associate different political parties strongly with their interpretation of the airport and thus have a strong positive or negative perception of the party. The divided perception is also recognized by local residents due to the sensitiveness of the subject. In terms of tax money spending from a positive perspective, inhabitants perceive it as part of the government to manage infrastructure affairs, as in the case of the airport, and thus create prosperity for the region. Furthermore, in favor of the airport, local residents expressed their concerns about unnecessary projects that are supported by tax payer money and that it could better aid the airport, rather than spending it on other projects that do not support the local community. Another aspect on the evaluation of local authorities is their handling of providing sufficient information. An independent research that evaluates and examinants a social-cost and benefit analysis from an objective base for MAA is supported by inhabitants for and against the airport. It is seen as necessity to evaluate the airport from all different aspects that include the option of airport closure as well as the benefits of an extension of the runway. There are however, inhabitants who have a very biased view on the airport and all related matters and thus strongly disagree with an evaluation that includes the option of closure.

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4.3.6 Key Perceptions about MAA The following table elaborates on the perceptions of the inhabitants in favor and against the airport. The findings are chosen as key terms in order to present a variety of perceptions with statements that were indicated during the online interviews. The visualization aids to comprehend the perceived impact of inhabitants and outlines the fact that it is a highly sensitive subject.

‘’I have been living under the approach route in ‘’MAA is far too close to the residential areas. Geleen for 65 years, and half the time I do not even Recently, flight activities have increased dramatically’’ hear the planes’’. ‘’MAA has no right to exist and only does so by heavy ‘’MAA is a valuable asset for our province and subsidies’’ contributes to the economy by creating job opportunities’’. ‘’The airport is not really necessary as there are plenty of airports in its vicinity such as Düsseldorf, Cologne, ‘’We literally live next to the airport (Ulestraten), and Liège, Brussels, etc. ‘’ of course you can hear the planes, but it is not disturbing’’. Table 3: Inhabitants Quotes

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5. Analysis

In this section, the empirical data will be analyzed in coherence with the secondary data that has been provided in the literature review. Furthermore, it displays the data in an analyzed way with an aspiration of answering the research questions as proposed in the introduction. First of all, a general analysis including current aspects of the airport is provided, followed by the value creation and stakeholder focus. Lastly, political orientation is analyzed and put into perspective of potential airport scenarios.

5.1 Subject Impact

One thing that became clear during the execution of the interviews, is that the topic of MAA and everything that evolves around it, is a present day topic in the province of Limburg. The local community and the politics are highly involved in the topic and the researchers perceived it as a topic that is very “alive”. The debate regarding the airport has been going on for many years and a lot of changes have been made during the past decades involving the airport. What is interesting is that there are many different opinions regarding the airport and that there does not seem to be a single right or wrong in this subject. A few local inhabitants who saw that there is a thesis being written about this subject even wrote several E-mails to the authors in order to amplify their opinions. Most of the political parties have a strong opinion about the airport as well and were very detailed in sharing their views towards the subject. It also became clear that there is a lot of emotion involved for many stakeholders of the airport in their opinion and that this somehow influences the extremity of their view. In other words, many stakeholders are either really in favor or really against the airport in general.

5.2 Aviation industry growth

The aviation industry as a whole is growing as can be retrieved from primary data as well as from the literature review. Airports in the Netherlands like Eindhoven and Schiphol are reaching their limits in terms of number of flights they can handle on a daily basis. This is where the importance of MAA with a focus on the future direction of the airport becomes most visible. Lelystad and Maastricht are examples of airports that could become of a greater significance by taking over a number of flights from the airports that are starting to reach their maximum capacity. This has already been done by MAA in the past with some cargo flights that transport flowers. All the interviewed stakeholder groups recognize this problem

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of the other airports reaching maximum capacity and many of them see this as an opportunity for MAA to expand their business. With growing air travel in general in Europe, it can be seen as a strong argument to keep the airport open since the Netherlands will very likely need to use its operations in the future.

5.3 MAA’s Dimension

Throughout the theoretical part of this thesis, MAA has constantly been considered as a regional or local airport. While according to the definition this is technically true, primary research pointed out that it is certainly an important airport for the whole country of the Netherlands as well. One could even state that it is a regional airport with national importance. The director, the politicians and even some of the local inhabitants mentioned aspects during the interviews of MAA being important to the whole country of the Netherlands rather than just the area of Limburg. The general opinion that involves around the airport is that it is not that important for the people of Limburg to have the airport nearby in terms of passenger transportation. It is mentioned that it is convenient for sure, but really not necessary as there are plenty of other airports nearby to fly from. The main strength of the airport is the cargo, but this does not only suit the people of Limburg, rather than it is there for the people throughout the Netherlands. The airport does help the local area by providing direct and indirect labour opportunities but is perceived by all stakeholder groups to have a big impact on the whole Netherlands as well. One could wonder if the airport should not be a matter of national politics as well, rather than just local politics because changes will have an impact on the country as a whole. The proposed freight tax by the national government, that is now being reconsidered, is a very controversial proposal since this would decrease the position of MAA even further. The director and some politicians mention that this would definitely not create a level playing field and that such a tax would be dramatic for MAA. It is worth considering for the national government to get financially involved in MAA, because if it would cease to exist, it could create problems in the future of the Dutch air travel industry. The other part that is perceived as unfair by some of the stakeholders, is that airports like Eindhoven and Schiphol are either directly or indirectly financially aided by the money of the national taxpayer, while this is not the case for MAA.

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5.4 Value Creation of MAA

In terms of value creation, MAA has the possibility to add to the cargo handling and distribution not only on a regional, however, on a national scale. The airport is especially suitable to operate and handle cargo flights, which are then distributed throughout the Netherlands. The fast handling of passengers and air cargo flights is one of the strongest attributes of MAA and has been recognized by the director in terms of the cargo situation, as well as inhabitants who have already experienced the service of MAA first-hand. Furthermore, it has the potential to develop this unique cargo situation even further, as it is one of the few airports of national significance that remain with a great potential to increase their operation capacities. This in fact, supports recent developments in the aviation industry and is in line with growing passenger and air cargo statistics. The airport has a great potential to attract companies that seek a location with an airport as a logistical link, which supports the value aspect of the airport in terms of business growth. In terms of economic value, the airport has a direct value creation prospect through employment opportunities as well as operations, such as cafes or shops within the airport. The employment component is evaluated to be the most fundamental due to the complexity and range of different jobs of an airport. Another value creation aspect is the circumstance of operating a connection opportunity on your own territory or in a broader aspect region. Despite the fact that the Netherlands is part of the European Union and thus entailed to open boarders, it is important to maintain the possibility of an airport in case of closure. This has been dramatically revealed by recent developments enforced by the COVID-19 crisis throughout Europe and resulting border controls and closure of certain sections.

5.4.1 Infrastructure and Accessibility One of the most apparent values of MAA is connected to the strategic infrastructure linking the airport and the region of Limburg. The airport creates an improved accessibility and thus enhances the infrastructure of the region. This in fact, can be linked to the indirect value creation of an airport in terms of value chain enhancement of goods and services. Nevertheless, it can also be analyzed that the airport is currently at a limited position with regards to its accessibility. The airport requires a revision of its flight connections to bigger hubs such as London or Frankfurt, in order to completely utilize its full accessibility potential. This is, however, on the field of passenger connection, and it has been stated several times already that this is not where the strength and focus of the airport lies. The airport, thus, in

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terms of passenger movement and accessibility is at the moment not that important for the region. Many parties plea for more investments in a proper railway network to improve the connection with the nearby European countries.

5.4.2 Socioeconomic Values The convenience factor is one important attribute of the airport that has been acknowledged by inhabitants as well as politicians. MAA is an important factor for events such as TEFAF and a convenience factor for visitors to fly directly to the region. Tourism is another value creation aspect that is enhanced by the airport as it is not only seen from a landmark prospective by a great deal of inhabitants, however, as a status part of the province of Limburg. From a socioeconomic perspective, the airport enjoys a superior reputation of its customer experiences. The fast security handling and check in times are accompanied by friendly stuff, who create a pleasant flight transaction. The question that remains among many is, however, is it really worth to invest as much money from the taxpayers of Limburg in the airport. There is an uncertainty if the benefits really weigh up to the costs.

5.5 Political Influence

The political influence is perceived as critical in the whole subject. Stakeholders in general agree that without political aid, the airport would cease to exist. The politicians, whom are also the only shareholder, do not only have influence in the existence, but also in the functioning of the airport. The deputy is a part of the GSM which ensures that the politicians are not only present in the government, but also have a saying in the operations of the airport.

An interesting fact is that most of the political parties have a strong opinion regarding their view towards MAA, while they do not have all the information that many of them say they need. In general, many political parties want to see a SCBA that investigates all the possible outcomes. The airport seems to be part of some political bureaucracy as well. Politics are not always complete science and sometimes political games are played. The right wing parties in general are in favor of the airport and mention all the advantages it brings with it. However, the right wing parties are also against a full SCBA that analyses all the options. In a way this is logical, because during the elections, these parties also stated that they are in favor of keeping the airport open. If they would now allow research to be done about possible closure

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of the airport, it could be perceived as breaking the trust of the people who voted for these parties.

For the clarity of the whole subject it would be best that a full SCBA is executed that investigates all the options, but for some political parties it could potentially endanger the promises they have made to the people. The existence of the airport, thus, depends for a major part on political promises, rather than actual neutral research.

5.6 Potential Future Scenarios

The future of MAA depends on the viewing points of the political parties in Limburg that are chosen by the inhabitants of Limburg. If at some point, left wing parties get the majority of the votes in Limburg, the continuous existence of MAA is very uncertain. As has been stated before, MAA is a regional airport of national importance, so it is likely that in this case the national government would interfere or try to influence the decision making of the politicians of Limburg somehow. At this moment the national government has no immediate reason to interfere, but as has been stated, this could become different in the future after new elections.

The current ruling parties say to be taking the livability of the area near to the airport into account by making efforts to keep down the nuisance. The shorter runway and the night time closure are the two greatest examples of this. The parties are doing this, while they are not legally obliged to do this. The people who have bought a house near to the airport have always known that the airport was there since it has been there for decades. Once one decides to live near an airport, it is also fair to expect some kind of nuisance due to the fact that planes can take off and land from any given airport. One can also predict that the number of flights and flight movements at an airport might fluctuate. It is unknown what percentage of the inhabitants close to the airport experiences nuisance, so the size of the problem is unknown.

Based on the empirical data that has been gathered by interviewing the various stakeholders, the researchers have decided to make a phone call with a national politician to gain some more clarity in the subject. The national politician is a member of the VVD, which is at the time of writing the party with the most seats in the national government of the Netherlands.

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This politician has been asked about the national importance of MAA, and stated that in case such a scenario happens that the province of Limburg would want to close their airport, the national government would probably try to buy the shares for a symbolic price of 1 Euro per share. Another possibility that has been mentioned, was that MAA would become a part of the Schiphol Group. MAA would then indirectly be financially aided by the national government, since they are the major shareholder of the Schiphol Group. The airports of Schiphol, Rotterdam, Lelystad and Eindhoven all belong to this group. This would also solve the issue of MAA not having a “level playing field” with other Dutch competitive airports. Either way, MAA is not likely not be closed, even if it would not have full support from the provincial state of Limburg.

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6. Conclusion

In this chapter, a conclusion is provided based on the two research question as mentioned in the introduction. Furthermore, it creates a connection between the empirical findings and the purpose of the thesis.

In terms of added value of the airport for its own and nearby area, it can be concluded that its direct value on a regional base is limited to certain aspects such as infrastructure and accessibility as well as a minor percentage of socioeconomic factors. However, MAA is to be characterized as an airport of national significance, rather than a regional, which is indicted by its vigorous cargo orientation and resulting valuable supplies throughout the whole Netherlands. Its significance reflects upon the fact that other airports in the Netherlands are slowly reaching their flight slot limits and rely on MAA on the field of cargo, and not on its passenger positioning, as several alternative airports with greater flight connection possibilities are nearby.

With regards to political orientation, most political parties have a strong predetermined opinion about the strategy of MAA. Decisions regarding the orientation of MAA are based on campaign promises and perceptions of the party in charge, rather than on neutral qualitative and quantitative research, which can be concluded by a non-existing full SCBA. The government of Limburg, which is strongly in favor of the airport, is the only shareholder of MAA and respects the livability of the area around the airport by enforcing night time closure and a shorter runaway. Due to current actions of the regional government, MAA’s strategy is not on the agenda of the national government, as they do not have to financially support them by any means. Nevertheless, in consideration of the benefits for the whole country resulting from the cargo situation of MAA, the national government would interfere, if the strategy of the airport were to change. Thus, it can be concluded that the stakeholder influence is based on a national significance with regards to the inhabitants of the whole country and the politicians in question, rather than the previously defined stakeholder groups within the context of a regional background.

The future of the airport is closely related to the political parties in charge of Limburg. Nevertheless, due to the national implication of MAA and its value for the country, rather than its presumed value for stakeholders of the MHAL region, the national government might gain a great decision consideration in the future.

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7. Discussion

The discussion paper provides practical and theoretical implications, while emphasizing on the former mentioned conclusion. Furthermore, it highlights the limitations throughout the research and ends on future study possibilities within the field of political orientation of MAA.

7.1 Practical Implications

Since MAA is a regional airport of national importance, it should be valued as such. The Provincial State of Limburg is encouraged to receive financial aid from the national government, rather than financing everything by themselves and thus by the taxpayer from their own province. MAA’s importance for the Dutch cargo industry, reflects on the fact that the national government would always intervene in hypothetical scenarios of closure. The national government initially might not agree to financially aid MAA, however, if the Provincial State of Limburg would consider closure as an actual option they would almost be forced to help. Furthermore, the possibility that a left wing government will rule in Limburg in the future, would also indicate the possibility of airport closure. As indicated throughout the research, the left wing parties might want to close the airport, due to environmental and nuisance reasons. If this were to happen, the national government might not be able to prevent closure and it could create a major problem for the Dutch aviation industry. For the national government, it might thus be a valuable consideration to become part of the shareholders of the airport, to create a direct decision power in its future. The Provincial State of Limburg could remain the other shareholder in order to protect the inhabitants of Limburg from experiencing too much nuisance and other problems that might be related to the airport. In case the national government is not interested in becoming shareholder, the Schiphol Group could consider getting involved. The Schiphol Group is partly owned by the national government and if they do not have enough flight slots available they will have to look for an alternative. MAA could be appealing for them. With regards to all scenarios, there should be an additional financial aid from another group than just the Provincial States. Due to the beneficial value of the airport for the whole country, there is a disadvantage in the financial support solely from the region of Limburg, as there are no major direct benefits from the airport and they have to deal with the discomfort of airport nuisance. This in fact, emphasis on another practical implication, the proposition to conduct a full social cost and benefit analysis, in order to investigate in depth nuisance complains and all components MAA displayed in a quantitative nature.

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7.2 Theoretical Implications

With regards to theoretical implications, the research indicates a strong tendency towards the confirmation of political orientation as a key aspect for regional airport strategies. Nevertheless, the case of MAA presents an exceptional situation due to the government of Limburg in charge being the only shareholder of the airport in question. The political situation encompasses a certain conflict potential, as it can be assumed that the politicians act in the interest of the public while being their representatives, and at the same time from a shareholder perspective leaning towards the progression of their business or airport, as in the case of MAA. Furthermore, it is essential that the theoretical framework takes into consideration the significance of an airport in terms of its national or regional importance.

Figure 4: Theoretical Implication Framework

This in fact, corresponds with the stakeholder theory and its core to determine common interests of each stakeholder group and their impact on an organization. The stakeholder theory assumption of equal terms requires clarification or adaption, if applied to regional airports, as different stakeholder groups such as inhabitants are potentially more vital due to their power of nuisance complains. Furthermore, employees are to be included, due to their influence on local authorities in the perspective of voting decisions that affect the local government. The separation of stakeholders as demonstrated in the figure 4, relates to the influence of each group in terms of their significance for the corresponding national

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government or local authorities, as can be seen for the local community and employees of the airport. The main contribution to theory is the decision power of politicians on a regional level and furthermore on a national level, despite common safety and security rules. Although this might be limited in the case of MAA due to the shareholder situation, with regards to airport strategies. The local authorities are to be characterized as the main force in terms of their influence on the airport strategy, however, the correlation to the local community and employees needs to be mentioned as they are elected by these stakeholder groups. On a national level, it is important to distinguish between local community and the general community with regards to the whole Netherlands. All theoretical implications and contributions on stakeholder influence are concluded in terms of political orientation including all aspects that relate to the subject.

7.3 Limitations

Throughout the research process, certain restraints have influenced the researchers to execute the full potential of the investigation subject. First of all, the research was roughly established within a four-and-a-half-month time frame, which created an urge to be on time with results and limited phases to fully contact potential experts or interviewees who possessed a valuable insight into the subject. Despite the time frame limitation, which only slightly inhibited the research, the most severe limitation resulted from the COVID-19 crisis throughout Europe. Within the focus of the research and its execution of interviews and data collection, the researchers were compelled to remain in Sweden without the chance of performing face-to-face interviews with stakeholders or surveys within the region of Limburg by contacting the local community directly. This in fact, might have limited the validity and reliability of interviewees responses, as body language and other sections of interview observations were excluded through phone and skype calls. Another limitation resulting from the COVID-19 crisis affected the contact possibilities of airports in terms of competitors as well as airlines. Due to grave consequences of the crisis and potential existing uncertainties, the stakeholders in question were unavailable for any interviews, and thus did not contribute in any primary matter to the research. The last limitation concerns the origin of the subject and the language of the interviews. Despite the proficiency of the researchers in the English language, there might have been some translation errors throughout the research that resulted from missing direct translation or wordings that differ between the Dutch and English language.

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7.4 Further Research

With regards to the aforementioned limitations, there are certain research fields within the subject that require future investigation from a different aspect or starting position. First of all, the research is of qualitative nature, which implies that there is a lack of insight into quantitative data, which at this point of time was non existing. Quantitative data with regards to numbers of inhabitants that experience nuisance would be of valuable insight for the future strategy of MAA. This in fact, would clarify the amount of inhabitants experiencing direct nuisance from the airport, under the circumstances of researching inhabitants of a defined radius. The current situation with regards to nuisance complains creates an unfavorable situation for the local government, as it is unknown to what extent nuisance is experienced and by whom. Thus, future research should include a quantitative approach. Hypothetically, assuming the outcome of the quantitative research within a predetermined radius, results in a majority of inhabitants with non to little nuisance or vice versa severe nuisance, the local government would be able to determine the strategy of MAA from an enhanced position. The conclusions of a quantitative research could be taken into consideration and presented to stakeholders while discussing future operations of MAA. Provincial states could potentially be involved in the execution of a quantitative research, due to their access to inhabitants, and thus determining the scope of nuisance complains.

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Appendices

Appendix A: Interview Questions Layout

Politician Interview Questions

Try to answer the questions as broadly as possible please.

Before the interview starts; can you tell me a little bit about yourself?

General perception/ opening phase of Interview 1. What is the view of your political party on the existence of MAA? 2. What is the influence of the provincial states on the existence of the airport? 3. How much influence does the government have on the functioning of MAA? 4. Do you think MAA could be profitable in the future and why?

Value creation of MAA 1. How would the Maastricht area be different without the airport? 2. How important is the Airport for the Infrastructure and Accessibility of the area? 3. If you had to think of the biggest advantage of MAA´s existence, what would it be? 4. If you had to think of the biggest disadvantage of MAA´s existence, what would it be?

Stakeholder influence 1. Taken into account that there are other airports nearby (Liége etc.). What benefits does the airport bring to the society or inhabitants of the region? 2. Which political measurements can be taken to help the airport attract airlines to fly on and from MAA? 3. Which role does the government play in attracting passengers for MAA? 4. What do you think that MAA means to the local community? Please mention some aspects that are negative and positive in your eyes. 5. How do regulations and restrictions affect the work of MAA´s management?

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Managing Director MAA Interview Questions

General perception/ opening phase of Interview 1. How much influence does the government have on the functioning of MAA? 2. Do you think MAA could be financially stable in the future and why? 3. Do you think MAA is ready yet for new private investors? Or when would you predict they would be ready for them? 4. What are your expectations on the air cargo situation of MAA? 5. What are your expectations on the passenger development at MAA? 6. How do regulations and restrictions affect the work of MAA´s management?

Value creation of MAA 1. How would the Maastricht area be different without the airport? 2. How important is the Airport for the Infrastructure and Accessibility of the area? 3. What are the short and long term goals of the airport? 4. What is the main strength of MAA in comparison to other nearby airports?

Stakeholder influence 1. Taken into account that there are other airports nearby (Liége etc.). What benefits does the airport bring to the society or inhabitants of the region? 2. How does the airport interact with Airlines regarding their permission to fly and land on MAA? 3. How does the airport and the provincial authorities communicate with each other? 4. How does the airport communicate with the local community? (Inhabitants/ companies)

Inhabitants Interview Questions

What is your general opinion about the existence of the airport (Maastricht Aachen Airport)?

Do you consider Maastricht Aachen Airport to be a landmark or something that has added value for the Maastricht area?

Have you ever used the airport? If so, how would you evaluate your experience?

Do you think there are too many airports in the region to remain financially healthy?

Do you experience noise nuisance from Maastricht Aachen Airport?

How do you feel about a possible expansion of the airport?

Do you think it is right to use taxpayers' money to keep the airport open?

What is your perception of the political parties that want to keep the airport open?

Do you think that an investigation should be conducted into a possible closure of the airport?

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Appendix B: Interviewees Politicians

POLITICAL PARTY INTERVIEWEE VVD Joost van den Akker (deputy) VVD Teun Heldens PVV Roger Ernst 50PLUS Anne Marie Fischer-Otten PVDA Aleida Berghorst GROENLINKS Kathleen Mertens SP Jorge Wolters Gregório Table 4: Politicians Overview

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Appendix C: GDPR Thesis Study Consent Form

This is a template to assist thesis students in the design of their GDPR consent form. You may adapt this template to the requirements of your particular project, using the notes and suggestions provided. the below information should always be included in any GDPR consent form on paper and as text in a web survey when personal data is processed within the framework of thesis work at JIBS. When using a web survey, add a box to the survey and a hyperlink to the survey, followed by this text: I choose to take part in the thesis study and consent to JIBS processing my personal data in accordance with current data protection legislation and the data delivered.

Required by European Union General Data Protection Regulation 2016/679

The GDPR consent form should always be accompanied by a Participant Information Sheet

GDPR Consent for research within the context of MAA and its value for the region as well as the influence of political orientation

Please tick the appropriate boxes Yes No

Taking part in the study I consent to JIBS processing my personal data in accordance with current data protection o o legislation and the data delivered.

I consent voluntarily to be a participant in this study and understand that I can refuse to o o answer questions and I can withdraw from the study at any time, without having to give a

reason.

My signature below indicates that I choose to take part in the thesis study and consent to JIBS treating my personal data in accordance with current data protection legislation and the data delivered.

______Name of participant [IN CAPITALS] Signature Date

Thesis contact details for further information Gijs Heldens - (+31) 618982343 - [email protected] René Paaß - (+49) 15734416960 - [email protected]

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Participant Information Sheet template

Invitation paragraph

Dear participant, we are two students from the University of Jönköping and currently writing our master thesis in the subject MAA in terms of value creation and political emphasis. Our topic is related to the current situation of the airport with regards to different stakeholders and how they might influence the strategy of the airport. The interview would last approximately 45min to 1 hour max and could be conducted via Skype in times of Corona. Before you decide whether or not to participate, it is important to understand why this research is being executed. We will explain the purpose and structure of the interview in the following.

Purpose of this study:

The purpose of this thesis is to generate a political oriented overview of perceptions and values related to Maastricht Aachen Airport that aids in determining the airport’s future by including various stakeholders of the MHAL region.

This study is written between January and May 2020. However, the gathering of empirical data is executed in March and April. The methodology of this thesis is following a qualitative approach including multiple semi-structured interviews in order to gather the required insights into the research topic.

'It is entirely up to you to decide whether or not to take part. If you decide to do so, you will be given this information sheet to keep and will be asked to give your consent.’ All the information that we collect about you during the course of the research will be kept strictly confidential. You will not be able to be identified in any ensuing reports or publications, if requested.’

Under GDPR you have the following rights over your personal data:

• The right to be informed. You must be informed if your personal data is being used. • The right of access. You can ask for a copy of your data by making a ‘subject access request’. • The right to rectification. You can ask for your data held to be corrected. • The right to erasure. You can ask for your data to be deleted. • The right to restrict processing. You can limit the way an organization uses your personal data if you are concerned about the accuracy of the data or how it is being used. • The right to data portability. You have the right to get your personal data from an organization in a way that is accessible and machine-readable. You also have the right to ask an organization to transfer your data to another organization. • The right to object. You have the right to object to the use of your personal data in some circumstances. You have an absolute right to object to an organization using your data for direct marketing. • How your data is processed using automated decision making and profiling. You have the right not to be subject to a decision that is based solely on automated processing if the decision affects your legal rights or other equally important matters; to understand the reasons behind decisions made about you by automated processing and the possible consequences of the decisions, and to object to profiling in certain situations, including for direct marketing purposes.

You should also know that you may contact the data protection officer if you are unhappy about the way your data or your participation in this study are being treated at [email protected]

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Thank you for reading this information sheet and for considering whether to take part in this research study.

Contact details for further information:

Thesis supervisor: Tommaso Minola E-mail: [email protected]

Thesis student: Gijs Heldens E-mail: [email protected] Thesis student: René Paaß E-mail: [email protected]

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