It goes without saying that maintaining connections with remote, secluded areas constitutes a valid reason for public authorities’ involvement. Such intervention is necessary due to the fact that small local communities would usually be unable to generate enough demand to commercially justify high-cost air operations. At the same time there is significant analytical material depicting the positive influence that an active airport have on a region’s economy. Therefore in Central and Eastern EU Member States which are generally underdeveloped in comparison to the countries of ‘Old Union’, stimulating air traffic should be perceived as a tool for regional development.

The Public Service Obligation is a EU law-based tool that allows the sustaining of air routes that are deemed necessary by the public authorities. The current regulatory framework is flexible or imprecise enough to cover connections beyond prima facie market failures. This paper presents the PSO framework in the light of its role for regional development.