Airport classification and functionality within the European network

This paper is meant to provide an insight into the roles and characteristics of the different typologies of airports by detailing a functional framework of European airports through the analysis of their distinctive features and interconnecting network. The first part of the work will focus on the classification of airports and their peculiarities following the most recent developments in this sector. The analysis will then turn to the methodology employed to verify the existence of subsystems (or modules) of high interconnectivity within the European aviation network. The classification hereby provided will therefore define the airports both as separate entities with specific characteristics and as parts of a particular network. The results will lead to the identification of major groups gathering together a number of airports characterized by similar features and goals. This paper will also hint at the existence of a solid parallel network within Europe, consisting of so-called secondary airports interconnected by means of low-cost carriers. It should here be stressed that the late development of the European airport network has been prompted by market-driven pressures rather than by clear-cut domestic or European schemes.