China’s big three state-owned carriers Air China, China Southern Airlines and China Eastern Airlines have recorded a cumulative loss of CNY14 billion ($2 billion) for Q1 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic brought the Chinese aviation industry to a standstill.
Wuhan Tianhe Airport (WUH) reopened its gates to scheduled commercial operations on April 8, marking the end of China’s 76-day lockdown of the city and the resumption of normal service to the airport.
China’s big three state carriers Air China, China Eastern Airlines and China Southern Airlines have released their operating numbers for February, revealing the damage of the COVID-19 lockdown on their performance.
China Eastern Airlines will reduce or suspend flights on 11 European and North American routes, apparently in response to further falls in demand amid the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.
China is next week set to welcome back a further 2 million departure seats to its network as the first market to be affected by COVID-19 coronavirus continues to recover.
A China Eastern subsidiary set up to fly Comac aircraft will serve coastal districts from the Yangzi River Delta and retain the business aviation operation on which it has been based, the parent company said.
China Eastern Airlines will begin revamping its frequent flyer program “Eastern Miles” from a mile-based system to a revenue-based one in the second half of 2020.
Air France-KLM and China Eastern's joint venture is to be enlarged to include Virgin Atlantic. As well as the new partnership, it has also been confirmed that regional airline Flybe, which was acquired earlier this year by a consortium that includes Virgin Atlantic, will re-brand as Virgin Connect.
Athens, Manchester and Milan could be set for new routes to China if the latest applications to the Civil Aviation Administration of China are given the green light.
As China Eastern schedules its latest new route to Western Europe, Routesonline looks at the growth of the market and the new services set to start in the coming months.
This week: China Eastern’s first A350-900; Lufthansa to reduce capacity growth; Chile court approves LATAM agreements; Air France-KLM CEO; United inaugurates new services and more.
Chinese airlines are this year on course to collectively carry more than 600 million passengers for the first time, research by Routesonline has found, as growth in the country’s domestic and international market continues to accelerate. The figure is a huge increase from the 440 million carried just five years ago.