Sustainable development in aviation logistics: Successful drivers and business strategies

Firms looking to implement sustainable development confront the problem of choosing among myriad options. To help them overcome it, this study develops two‐stage data‐driven analytics aimed at establishing which alternatives for sustainable development are most likely to succeed, based on careful scrutiny of sustainable‐aviation cases. Specifically, it first ascertains the factors that are most critical to aviation logistics in general and then goes on to identify the vital drivers of successful sustainable development in the same field. The analytical results of the proposed models reveal that sustainable initiatives (ecological conservation and environmental R&D), weight, conversion, and fuel efficiency are successful drivers for organizations to achieve environmental sustainability in aviation logistics. Furthermore, natural‐resource‐based view theory is utilized to develop business strategies that involve eco‐friendly initiatives, product stewardship, and clean technologies.