A Bibliometric Analysis of Air Cargo: Milestones, Trends, and Future Directions

ABSTRACT Air cargo facilitates access to geographically challenging markets with minimal environmental impact. Despite global pandemics, crises, and wars, air cargo transport remains essential for people, even with decreasing demand. This study aims to conduct a bibliometric analysis in the air cargo sector. In this context, this study aims to define the milestones in the history of air cargo transport, the latest highlights and trends, and provide guidance for future research. The analysis period spans from 1956 to 2024. For this purpose, data from the Scopus database was analyzed using VOSviewer software. A tottal of 108 articles were examined through co‐citation analysis, revealing the formation of three clusters: Cluster 1 focused on Revenue Management, Cluster 2 on Network, and Cluster 3 on Capacity. Additionally, 215 articles were analyzed to identify the 10 most and least preferred author keywords. The study highlights the authors who will contribute to air cargo research. Most studies in the air cargo field were conducted in 2022, while most articles were published in 2009. The most studied countries include the United States (126), China (69), and Taiwan (57). Researchers are provided with practical implications regarding air cargo operations, management, cost reduction, innovation, technology, safety, and security.