DYNAMIC MODEL OF PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT OF MIDDLE EAST AIRLINES

Abstract

Over the past decades, the rapid development of the airline industry has occurred in the Middle East and particularly in the United Arab Emirates. The need for the development of the aviation sector has emerged due to the strategically important position that Middle East occupies as the central point between the eastern and western hemispheres. Its major airlines, so called Middle East Big Three (MEB3) - Emirates, Etihad and Qatar Airways, have become dominant in the region, as well as across the globe, primarily thanks to the high quality of their services and globally recognized brand. The focus of the assessment are the airlines’ non-financial performance indicators, such as: the number of carried passengers and cargo, number of employees, serving destinations, fleet size, etc. The analysis covered a period of twelve years, starting from 2005 until 2016, which was characterized by the expansion of these airlines. For each observed company, the efficiency was first separately measured using the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) method, followed by the dynamic analysis and measurement of their efficiencies using the DEA Window analysis. In both cases, Emirates Airlines had the best performance.