Evolution of Chinese airport network

TL;DR

This paper analyzes the evolution of the Chinese airport network using complex network theory, revealing stable topology but dynamic internal changes, exponential traffic growth, and varying correlations between cargo and passenger flows across city types.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive analysis of the structural and traffic evolution of the Chinese airport network, highlighting internal dynamics and traffic patterns with new insights.

Findings

Topology remains steady over years

Traffic grows exponentially with seasonal fluctuations

Cargo and passenger traffic correlations vary by city type

Abstract

With the rapid development of economy and the accelerated globalization process, the aviation industry plays more and more critical role in today's world, in both developed and developing countries. As the infrastructure of aviation industry, the airport network is one of the most important indicators of economic growth. In this paper, we investigate the evolution of Chinese airport network (CAN) via complex network theory. It is found that although the topology of CAN remains steady during the past several years, there are many dynamic switchings inside the network, which changes the relative relevance of airports and airlines. Moreover, we investigate the evolution of traffic flow (passengers and cargoes) on CAN. It is found that the traffic keeps growing in an exponential form and it has evident seasonal fluctuations. We also found that cargo traffic and passenger traffic are positively related but the correlations are quite different for different kinds of cities.