Prospects for the development of Gagarin Airport (Saratov) as a regional hub of the Volga Federal District
Purpose: to build a model for the future development of the Gagarin airport (the city of Saratov) as a regional hub (base airport) of the Volga Federal District. Discussion: Saratov has a favorable geographic location, the organization of a regional hub will allow the airport to significantly increase passenger traffic, becoming the leading airport in the Central Federal District and the base airport for a regional airline. Saratov Airport was commissioned in 2019; it is a completely new regional airport that meets all international requirements and safety and quality standards. However, the airport's passenger traffic continues to remain at an extremely low level due to the fact that the airport serves the population of Saratov and the Saratov region and is not a hub for regional airlines. Comparison of the airports of Voronezh and Rostov-on-Don in the structure of the study proves the effectiveness of the model for the development of a hub based on a regional airport. The experience of building hubs of the Spanish low-cost airline Volotea proves the effectiveness of building a regional route network. Results: with the development of Gagarin airport as a regional hub of the Volga Federal District, an increase in passenger traffic will occur. This will have a positive effect on increasing the airport's profitability, creating new jobs, attracting companies from the retail and consumer services segment, which in the context of macroeconomic instability is one of the important factors in the growth of the regional economy.