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Analysis of institutional authors

Rodríguez-Sanz ACorresponding Author

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May 15, 2023
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Article

Cost–Benefit Analysis of Investments in Air Traffic Management Infrastructures: A Behavioral Economics Approach

Publicated to: Aerospace. 10 (4): 383- - 2023-04-01 10(4), DOI: 10.3390/aerospace10040383

Authors:

Rodríguez-Sanz, A; Andrada, LR
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Affiliations

Univ Autonoma Madrid UAM, Dept Appl Econ, Madrid 28049, Spain - Author
Univ Politecn Madrid UPM, Dept Aerosp Syst Air Transport & Airports, Plaza Cardenal Cisneros N3, Madrid 28040, Spain - Author
Universidad Autónoma de Madrid - Author
Universidad Politécnica de Madrid , Universidad Autónoma de Madrid - Author
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Abstract

An important and challenging question for airport operators is the management of airport capacity and demand. Airport capacity depends on the available infrastructure, external factors, and operating procedures. Investments in Air Traffic Management (ATM) infrastructures mainly affect airside operations and include operational enhancements to improve the efficiency, reliability, and sustainability of airport operations. Therefore, they help increase capacity while limiting the impact on the airport infrastructure itself. By reviewing the neoclassical valuation principles for Cost–Benefit Analysis (CBA), we find that it does not consider relevant behavioral economic challenges to conventional analysis, particularly: failure of the expected utility hypotheses, dependence of valuations on reference points, and time inconsistency. These challenges are then incorporated through practical guidelines into the traditional welfare model to achieve a new methodology. We propose a novel CBA behavioral framework for investments in ATM infrastructures to help policy makers and airport operators when faced with a capacity development decision. This is complemented with a practical example to illustrate and test the applicability of the proposed model. The case study evaluates the deployment of Automatic Dependent Surveillance–Broadcast (ADS–B) as an investment aimed at improving ATM operational procedures in the airport environment by providing advanced ground surveillance data. This allows airport operators to discover the causes of taxi congestion and safety hotspots on the airport airside. The benefits of ADS–B are related to enhanced flight efficiency, reduced environmental impact, increased airport throughput, and improved operational predictability and flexibility, thus reducing waiting times. At the airport level, reducing the waiting times of aircraft on the ground would lead to a capacity release and a reduction in delays. The results show that, following a traditional CBA, the investment is clearly viable, with a strong economic return. Including behavioral notions allows us to propose a new evaluation framework that complements this conclusion with a model that also considers inconsistencies in time and risk perception. A positive Net Present Value can turn into a negative prospect valuation, if diminishing sensitivity and loss aversion are considered. This explains the reticent behavior of decision makers toward projects that require robust investments in the short-term, yet are slow to generate positive cash flows. Finally, we draw conclusions to inform policy makers about the effects of adopting a behavioral approach when evaluating ATM investments.
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Keywords

ads-bairport investmentsbehavioral economicscapacitycapacity and demandcompetitioncongestioncost-benefit analysisdecisiondemandprospect-theoryuncertaintyAds–bAir traffic managementAirport infrastructureAirport investmentsBehavioral economicsCapacity and demandCost–benefit analysis

Quality index

Bibliometric impact. Analysis of the contribution and dissemination channel

The work has been published in the journal Aerospace due to its progression and the good impact it has achieved in recent years, according to the agency WoS (JCR), it has become a reference in its field. In the year of publication of the work, 2023, it was in position 14/52, thus managing to position itself as a Q2 (Segundo Cuartil), in the category Engineering, Aerospace. Notably, the journal is positioned en el Cuartil Q2 para la agencia Scopus (SJR) en la categoría Aerospace Engineering.

Independientemente del impacto esperado determinado por el canal de difusión, es importante destacar el impacto real observado de la propia aportación.

Según las diferentes agencias de indexación, el número de citas acumuladas por esta publicación hasta la fecha 2025-12-20:

  • WoS: 2
  • Scopus: 3
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Impact and social visibility

From the perspective of influence or social adoption, and based on metrics associated with mentions and interactions provided by agencies specializing in calculating the so-called "Alternative or Social Metrics," we can highlight as of 2025-12-20:

  • The use of this contribution in bookmarks, code forks, additions to favorite lists for recurrent reading, as well as general views, indicates that someone is using the publication as a basis for their current work. This may be a notable indicator of future more formal and academic citations. This claim is supported by the result of the "Capture" indicator, which yields a total of: 37 (PlumX).

With a more dissemination-oriented intent and targeting more general audiences, we can observe other more global scores such as:

    It is essential to present evidence supporting full alignment with institutional principles and guidelines on Open Science and the Conservation and Dissemination of Intellectual Heritage. A clear example of this is:

    • The work has been submitted to a journal whose editorial policy allows open Open Access publication.
    • Assignment of a Handle/URN as an identifier within the deposit in the Institutional Repository: https://oa.upm.es/81870/

    As a result of the publication of the work in the institutional repository, statistical usage data has been obtained that reflects its impact. In terms of dissemination, we can state that, as of

    • Views: 224
    • Downloads: 167
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    Leadership analysis of institutional authors

    There is a significant leadership presence as some of the institution’s authors appear as the first or last signer, detailed as follows: First Author (RODRIGUEZ SANZ, ALVARO) .

    the author responsible for correspondence tasks has been RODRIGUEZ SANZ, ALVARO.

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