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The South African Aviation Industry: An Analysis of Volumes, Employment, and Carbon Footprint
Thesis (MCom)--Stellenbosch University, 2026.
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| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | English |
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Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University
2026
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| _version_ | 1867613801019342848 |
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| access_status_str | Open Access |
| author | Bekker, Michaela Rene |
| author2 | Krygsman, Stephan |
| author_browse | Bekker, Michaela Rene Krygsman, Stephan |
| author_facet | Krygsman, Stephan Bekker, Michaela Rene |
| author_sort | Bekker, Michaela Rene |
| collection | Thesis |
| dc_rights_str_mv | Stellenbosch University |
| description | Thesis (MCom)--Stellenbosch University, 2026. |
| format | Thesis |
| id | oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/135614 |
| institution | Stellenbosch University (South Africa) |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2026-06-10T12:41:54.752Z |
| license_str | Other — see source repository |
| provenance_str_mv | Harvested via OAI-PMH from SUNScholar — Stellenbosch University Repository |
| publishDate | 2026 |
| publishDateRange | 2026 |
| publishDateSort | 2026 |
| publisher | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| publisherStr | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| record_format | dspace |
| source_str | SUNScholar — Stellenbosch University Repository |
| spelling | oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/135614 The South African Aviation Industry: An Analysis of Volumes, Employment, and Carbon Footprint Bekker, Michaela Rene Krygsman, Stephan Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences. Dept. of Logistics. Thesis (MCom)--Stellenbosch University, 2026. Bekker, M. R. 2026. The South African Aviation Industry: An Analysis of Volumes, Employment, and Carbon Footprint. Unpublished masters thesis. Stellenbosch: Stellenbosch University [online]. Available: https://scholar.sun.ac.za/items/2da09d2f-c5c6-4f19-9d6b-58cf7a69944a The aviation industry is critical for the South African economy, underpinning trade, tourism, and connecting people and markets domestically and internationally. Beyond its direct operations, industry spillovers support supply chains, employment, and generate multiplier effects which amplify development and competitiveness. This thesis conducts a longitudinal analysis of three critical pillars of the South African aviation industry, namely volumes, employment, and carbon footprint, to establish a baseline for policy and industry decision making. Using secondary data spanning multiple decades for the volume analysis, the study traces passenger and freight growth dynamics. The study quantifies the spatial and sectoral distribution of full-time employment at municipal and national scales for the aviation industry in the past decade; and estimates the industry’s carbon footprint by flight type, alongside indicative carbon tax liabilities. Volume trends are contextualised with macroeconomic cycles, exogenous shocks, structural industry changes, and South Africa’s evolving connectivity. Employment is analysed through density and employment metrics to analyse and benchmark national specialisation in the municipalities housing the three largest airports, namely OR Tambo International Airport, Cape Town International Airport, and King Shaka International Airport. The income and employee productivity is also analysed and used as a benchmarking tool. The carbon footprint analysis is conducted using the territory principle, with per unit emissions in the passenger and freight industry measuring efficiency. Forecasting carbon tax scenarios using statutory rates and CO₂ as a proxy, illustrates the fiscal exposure on a marginally profitable industry. The analysis found that there was a strong but cyclical expansion of passenger and freight volumes over time, with various recoveries after the pandemic across airports and markets. There is distinct spatial clustering of aviation employment around major hubs, and wage premia relative to local remuneration, with increased labour productivity in the passenger industry and volatile results in the freight industry. The absolute CO₂ emissions have continued to grow, with gradual improvements in per unit emission efficiency, implying increased technological and operational efficiency. The results highlight the aviation industry’s economic multiplier effects with employment, while quantifying the environmental externalities, emphasizing the intricate balance of the industry. Masters 2026-04-02T09:28:26Z 2026-04-02T09:28:26Z 2026-03 Thesis https://scholar.sun.ac.za/handle/10019.1/135614 en Stellenbosch University 155 pages : ill. application/pdf Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| spellingShingle | Bekker, Michaela Rene The South African Aviation Industry: An Analysis of Volumes, Employment, and Carbon Footprint |
| title | The South African Aviation Industry: An Analysis of Volumes, Employment, and Carbon Footprint |
| title_full | The South African Aviation Industry: An Analysis of Volumes, Employment, and Carbon Footprint |
| title_fullStr | The South African Aviation Industry: An Analysis of Volumes, Employment, and Carbon Footprint |
| title_full_unstemmed | The South African Aviation Industry: An Analysis of Volumes, Employment, and Carbon Footprint |
| title_short | The South African Aviation Industry: An Analysis of Volumes, Employment, and Carbon Footprint |
| title_sort | south african aviation industry an analysis of volumes employment and carbon footprint |
| url | https://scholar.sun.ac.za/handle/10019.1/135614 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT bekkermichaelarene thesouthafricanaviationindustryananalysisofvolumesemploymentandcarbonfootprint AT bekkermichaelarene southafricanaviationindustryananalysisofvolumesemploymentandcarbonfootprint |