Kunming Airlines, a new subsidiary of Shenzhen Airlines, will begin flying from its base in the Chinese province of Yunnan on Feb. 15, only a month after plans for the carrier were announced. The newly launched airline is raising its sights beyond domestic operations, with plans to fly to the Southeast Asian countries adjacent to the southern province. The initial fleet is composed of two Boeing 737-700s and one 737-800 but the carrier plans to increase fleet size to 10 aircraft this year and to 30 within three years. The first service will connect the carrier's hub, provincial capital Kunming, with the central city of Changsha. Yunnan has become a focus of activity in the Chinese aviation sector over the past year. Hainan Airlines, the fourth largest Chinese aviation group, is also setting up there by building up a carrier called Yunnan Airlines based on its subsidiary, Lucky Air. Both are exploiting the local weakness of China Eastern, the big state airline that took over a former provincial carrier-also called Yunnan Airlines-in 2002. Ailing China Eastern is now trying to reduce its equity in the division.
展开▼
