Browsing by Author "Henderson, Isaac Levi"

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    Could airships make a comeback? : evidence from a case study within the tourism industry of Queenstown, New Zealand : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Aviation at Massey University, Manawatū Campus, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2016) Henderson, Isaac Levi
    Airships are lighter-than-air (LTA) aircraft that have historically been used for passenger and cargo services. However, since the advent of the Hindenburg Disaster in 1937, their use in civil aviation has been markedly limited. Airships have a number of characteristics that are unique from other aircraft and arguably may generate consumer interest for certain applications. This thesis illustrates that one potentially viable application of airships within civil aviation is scenic flights for touristic purposes. To examine consumer interest in scenic airship services, a mixed-methods approach was employed using Queenstown, New Zealand as a case study. Focus groups were used to explore broad consumer opinions relating to airships, including preferences and concerns. These opinions were quantified using a questionnaire. The focus groups and questionnaire results revealed consumer preferences with regard to activities (e.g. food and drink), airship design (e.g. facilities) and the nature of the experience (e.g. novelty), as well as concerns (e.g. safety). To present a business case, these preferences were used to design two options for a scenic airship service, both using a conceptual airship design called the Aether Concept. The first option was a 3 1/2 hour sightseeing tour that incorporated a meal and a drink, while the second option was an all-inclusive overnight service. A market evaluation using these two options revealed significant interest (in terms of pricing and demand) from consumers towards both options as well as the idea of performing adventure activities as part of either option. Consumer justifications for pricing and purchase decisions in the market evaluation were incorporated with the preferences and concerns from the focus groups and questionnaire to form a descriptive model that shows the motivational factors (relaxation, adventure, nature, novelty, quality, enjoyment and education) and mediating factors (location, duration, on-board activities, airship design, risk perception and price perception) that contribute towards consumer interest in scenic airship services. In addition, a new methodology for developing and testing new discontinuous products is presented and demonstrated in this thesis.
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    Rethinking the brand concept for air transportation : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Aviation at Massey University, Manawatū Campus, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2020) Henderson, Isaac Levi
    The study of brands and branding in the aviation industry is not new. However, in common with the more general branding literature, there is a fundamental problem at the centre of research: what is the subject of study? This is the problem of brand definition and, in common with most of the branding literature, it is not unusual to find studies of the brand or branding in the aviation literature where the understanding of the brand concept differs between authors. This thesis emphasises the need to have clarity of definition before proceeding to research a concept. The solution to the problem of brand definition is a return to what is described as the Label and Associations Model (LAM), as highlighted in Chapter 1. In the LAM, the brand is conceptualised as a trade name/logo that identifies a product and/or service or firm. The interesting point of study in this model is not the brand itself, but the brand associations (what comes to mind upon the presentation of a brand). The LAM is applied to study airline brand choice (Chapter 2), airport brand association structures, and airport brand choice (Chapters 3 and 4). The application of the LAM was done in conjunction with the guiding methodological principles of the thesis, which involved the free elicitation of brand associations to avoid self-generated validity and construct creation, as well as recognise heterophenomenology. Combining the LAM with free elicitation meant using the brand name or logo to elicit associations stored in long-term memory. This approach provides both clarity as to the subject of study (with the brand being a name or logo), while allowing participants to provide any form of association without prompting or bias from the researcher. The result of this approach is new research findings, theory, and managerial implications for the aviation industry. This thesis demonstrates that it is the tangible product/service attributes (e.g., price, reliability, facilities) that air travellers are most likely to associate with airline and airport brands, rather than more abstract associations (e.g., reputation, loyalty, social responsibility). Other insightful findings include discovering a new type of brand (termed as a compound brand) that applies to airports and highlighting the role of double jeopardy within airline markets. These contributions were only possible due to the use of the LAM in conjunction with the free elicitation of brand associations, thus unifying the thesis conceptually and methodologically.