The nexus between air transport and economic growth geographically: An evidence based on heterogeneous panel data models

This study examines the nexus between air transport and economic growth on continents by considering the heterogeneity in panel data with the data of 91 countries for the period 2002-2021. According to the result of the Pedroni's cointegration test, economic growth affects air transport in the long-run. These results are also supported by the results of the error correction model. In the short-run, economic growth is found to affect air transport in a few countries in Europe, while in the long-run, this effect is found to be valid for all countries. On the other hand, Dumitrescu and Hurlin panel Granger causality test shows that air transport causes economic growth in the short-run in at least one panel. This causality is found to be statistically significant in 9 Asian countries, 6 European countries, 4 American countries, 2 Oceanian countries, and 2 African countries in the sample.