AVIATION DEREGULATION IN THE EUROPEAN-UNION - DO ACTORS LEARN IN THE REGULATION GAME

The United States has led the market liberalisation that has occurred over the past 15 years. Changes in the United States have not been tro uble free. However, according to most impartial academic studies, chan ges in sectors such as aviation have generated net welfare gains. Othe r countries and industries liable to regulatory reform can learn from the United States. Governments have the scope to develop policies with fewer pitfalls, and industry can adopt strategies for retaining their market power. This paper looks specifically at how the aviation polic ymakers of the European Union have learned from the U.S. experience an d how European airlines have equally adjusted their game.