The Future of Digitalization in the Aviation Industry: Trends and Academic Approaches

As leadership and management styles evolve in the age of artificial intelligence, industries are rapidly evolving and developing. Natural language models, big data, and advances in information technology that shape this modern era are enhancing areas such as operational efficiency, safety, ground services, and air services in the aviation sector, thereby strengthening decision support processes. This study was conducted to fill gaps in the literature and guide future research by presenting the quantity and quality of studies on digitalization in aviation between 2005 and 2025 using visual network maps. To this end, studies on digitalization in the aviation sector were identified in the Social Sciences Citation Index, Science Citation Index Expanded, Emerging Sources Citation Index, Conference Proceedings Citation Index – Science, Social Science & Humanities, and Book Citation Index – Science, and their quantity and quality were evaluated. Data extracted from the Web of Science database was analyzed using bibliometric methods with R. The results obtained by searching for the concepts “Aviation” and “Digitalization” were interpreted.A total of 82 studies found in the Web of Science database between 2005 and 2025 were accessed. Of these works, 51 were articles, 28 were abstracts, 2 were editorial materials, and 1 was a book chapter. The analysis revealed that the year with the highest number of studies was 2024, with 17 articles. Digitalization in aviation is a current concept, and its increasing coverage in the international literature each year is expected to make significant contributions to the digital future of the sector.