Managing Airline Expenses: Cost-Cutting Strategies

In the last year before the pandemic, the global airline industry, while making an overall profit of $35 billion, showed a profit margin of only about 4.2 percent. This fact alone highlights the importance of careful cost management - even modest cost overruns can mean the difference between profit and loss.

This course covers the key cost management strategies used by airlines. The course is organized by the key cost categories: fuel, labor, aircraft ownership and maintenance, etc. You will also learn about the key concepts in the Economics of Costs, and see how they can be applied to cost management in the airline business context.

This course will give you a checklist of sorts that they will be able to refer to when dealing with cost management in their work. You will be able to approach the task systematically, knowing what specific items and issues to pay attention to. You will become a more valuable player on your team.

At the end of this course, participants will be able to:

• Explain the similarities and differences in cost structures across the airlines that pursue different business models 
• Gain an understanding of the extent to which the costs are within the airlines’ control
• Discover the key strategies the carrier can pursue to keep costs in check
• Explore the key components of the airline costs
• Consider various cost containment strategies employed by the airlines worldwide
• Determine which cost reduction strategies are available to an airline, and decide which of the available strategies to use 
• Understand the cost implications of the carrier’s business model and strategic priorities

• Airline Managers
• Cost Managers
• Finance Managers
• Forecasters
• Revenue Managers