Lufthansa has revealed plans to change its route network in China for the Summer 2012 schedule, cancelling its existing flights between Frankfurt and Guangzhou and using the available capacity to resume services to Shanyang and launch flights to Qingdao. The new offering, which will serve both Shanyang and Qingdao on a joint service will be provided three times weekly with a 266-seat Airbus A340-300 from March 26, 2012.
The German national carrier and Star Alliance member is one of a number of carriers that are now establishing direct air links from Europe and the Middle East to regional destinations, taking advantage of the tremendous growth potential in the rapidly expanding country. Shenyang, which was last served by Lufthansa in 2009 via Seoul Incheon, is a key industrial centre in northeastern China, while Qingdao is a Yellow Sea port city in the Shandong Province.
“China is and will remain one of the key growth markets for Lufthansa,” said Kay Kratky, Member of the Lufthansa German Airlines Board, Frankfurt & Flight Operations. “With the resumption of our service to Shenyang and the opening of the new route to Qingdao, we are underlining our position and offering our customers a total of 55 flights per week to six destinations in China.” In addition to the new services to these two major cities in northeastern China, Lufthansa will also fly next summer to Beijing, Shanghai, Nanjing and Hong Kong.
Shenyang has a population of roughly 7.2 million and lies about 700 kilometres from Beijing. It is the capital city of Liaoning province is one of China's largest industrial centres. The economic structure of the region is dominated by motor vehicle and aircraft manufacturing, as well as by the chemical industry and the IT sector. It also has two trade fair centres, which house regular exhibitions and shows. Over the next few years, as part of a regional development strategy, Shenyang and seven major cities in the surrounding area will be integrated into the Shenyang Metropolitan Area.
The population of Qingdao is about 8.5 million. Thanks to its deep-water harbour, the city is of key importance to the oil-refining industry and goods traffic in the entire Shandong Peninsula on China's eastern coastline. The port is the third largest in China and the ninth largest worldwide. In addition to the fishery industry, the main industries that are based here are textiles and domestic electronics, and there are a number of major tyre manufacturers. Qingdao is also one of China's most popular beach resorts.
Shenyang Taoxian International Airport is currently the 21st busiest facility in the country (2010 data) but is network is currently restricted to domestic destinations and points across the Asian market. Qingdao Liuting International Airport was the 15th largest facility in China during the same period with a network that is again focused on the domestic and regional markets. An estimated 1.2 million O&D passengers flew between Germany and China last year with around 8,000 passengers travelling to Shenyang and 8,000 more to Qingdao.
Related Content
