DETERMINANTS OF CUSTOMER LOYALTY: A FIELD RESEARCH IN AVIATION INDUSTRY

Abstract

The encouragements of Turkish government for aviation industry in 2003 have paved the way for private airlines to enter the market. Through the increasing number of airlines and the rivalry between them, especially low-cost carriers have started to give transportation service with cheaper ticket prices. According to The International Air Transportation Association (IATA) estimates, the number of passengers travelling with airlines around the world will reach to 3.8 billion passengers in 2020 and low-cost carriers’ flight networks and numbers especially in developing countries as Turkey will continue to gain momentum. When considering the increased passenger traffic in Turkish travel industry, providing the passenger loyalty for Turkish low-cost carriers has also become obligatory for these companies’ survival in the longrun. In this study, determinants of passengers’ loyalty as perceived value and trust have been searched. For this purpose, 350 questionnaires were applied to the passengers travelling with low-cost carriers at Hatay and Adana Airports in Turkey, 311 of which were analyzed after eliminating invalid ones. Structural equation modelling was applied for data analysis. According to the analysis results, perceived value and trust were identified as the important determinants of passenger loyalty.