16 Feb 2021

China Aviation Industry Newsletter 16 February

ACCC issues final determination granting re-authorisation of Qantas and China Eastern Airlines' Joint Coordination Agreement The ACCC has issued its final determination revoking authorisations A91470 and A91471 and granting authorisation AA1000526 in substitution to enable Qantas and China Eastern Airlines to give effect to an extended Joint Coordination Agreement under which the airlines will continue to coordinate their operations between Australia and mainland China. In the context of the significant disruption to international travel resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, the ACCC considers the joint coordination agreement is likely to result in faster and more sustainable reinstatement and potential growth in capacity between Australia and China, representing a benefit to consumers seeking to travel between the two countries as restrictions ease. The ACCC has decided to grant re-authorisation until 31 March 2023. China has more than 40,000 travel agencies China had a total of 40,682 travel agencies by the end of 2020, statistics from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism (MCT) showed. In the fourth quarter of 2020, travel agencies across the country organized about 25.25 million domestic trips. The top 10 destinations for domestic visitors during the period were Zhejiang, Hubei, Hainan, Jiangsu, Guizhou, Guangdong, Yunnan, Hunan, Anhui and Shaanxi. Chinese tourists keen on short-distance travel, focus on safety Chinese tourists showed more interest in near destinations and focused more on safety in travel consumption in 2020, a recent report showed. Short-distance travel registered the fastest recovery from the COVID-19 setbacks within the tourism industry since the second quarter of last year, according to a report by Chinese travel service and social-networking platform Mafengwo. GAMECO adds line for converted Boeing 737 freighters Boeing and GAMECO in China said they will add a production line to the 737-800 Boeing Converted Freighter (BCF) project in China. The new production line will be the third in the partnership between Boeing and Guangzhou Aircraft Maintenance Engineering in Guangzhou and is set to meet the demand for freighter conversion driven by the booming express delivery and e-commerce sectors in the country, according to Boeing China. Greater Bay Airlines applies to HKSAR for new routes with 104 destinations Greater Bay Airlines Company Ltd. has formally applied to the Air Transport Licensing Authority of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) to operate new routes between Hong Kong and 104 destinations, the regional government said in a Gazette notice published on Friday. The Hong Kong start-up has applied for the right to operate more than 100 routes with Hong Kong International Airport as the "point of departure," according to the notice. Acumen Aviation © 16 February 2021 All Rights Reserved.