Sustainable Marketing Practices in European Airlines

Abstract

In recent years, it is observed that consumers behave more environmentally due to the increasingly negative effects of global climate change. As a result of this situation, it can be said that there is an increase in the sustainable marketing activities of airlines. Studies on the sustainable marketing activities of airlines and the attitudes of passengers towards the activities of these airlines are relatively few in our country. Therefore, in this study, while the sustainable activities of airline companies operating in Europe were examined, Turkish and European passengers the general environmental awareness and attitudes towards green airlines were also examined. A questionnaire that included questions about the environmental awareness, flight frequency, flight purposes, airline preferences, and demographic information of the participants was applied to traveling passengers in Turkey and Europe. At the end of the study, the passengers' attitudes towards green airlines were examined and it was observed that there was a similarity in the attitudes of Turkish and European passengers towards green airlines. In addition, it has been observed that the demographic characteristics of the passengers such as their social, and cultural and economic characteristics are also effective in purchasing an eco-friendly product or service. Furthermore, the study found that price is a very important factor in the passengers' choice of green service. Finally, at the end of the study, some suggestions were made to contribute to the sustainable marketing activities of airlines.