The start-up will inaugurate flights on April 2, 2015 with a three times weekly links to Budapest and Prague, while three times weekly flights to the Italian destinations of Milan and Rome will follow from April 3, 2015.
According to Ding Shaoxiang, vice governor of Yunnan province government, the route successes of China Eastern Airlines linking Kunming to Paris Charles De Gaulle last year and Vancouver International Airport from this year should be followed by a new direct link to Australia in 2016 serving either Melbourne or Sydney.
In its nine years of operation as a HNA Aviation group subsidiary, Lucky Air has developed its network to cover more than 40 destinations across 21 Chinese provinces with a fleet of approaching 25 aircraft. It now serves 61 routes and handled 5.67 million passengers last year.
Ryanair last week revealed it was in talks with manufacturers, with a view to ordering long-haul aircraft after its board approved plans to begin transatlantic flights. However, the carrier has subsequently said said no approval has yet been received to expand into the long-haul, transatlantic market, putting the erroneous information down to a “miscommunication”.
With nearly 80 per cent of the Chinese population and economy within a range circle of about 2,000 km across Central and Eastern regions, congestion will remain a major talking point in China and an issue that will not be easily resolved. Meanwhile, domestic air travel will remain very important for China’s aviation development.
Air Serbia, the national airline of the Republic of Serbia recently launched its very own theme song, titled “The Wings of Europe”, especially dedicated to the carrier and its passengers.
United Airports of Georgia will host the route development forum for CIS, Central & Eastern Europe, Middle East & Asia for the second time in July 2015
France and Germany are leading a call for the European Union to ensure fair competition between EU airlines and those from the Gulf region, who are accused of receiving major state backing.
Canada-based First Air has announced that it is actively looking to add new aircraft to its fleet in order to modernise and decrease the number of aircraft types in use.
Southwest Airlines is to begin flights from Houston Hobby to both Mexico City and San Jose Cabo after receiving approval from the US Department of Transportation (DOT) and the Mexican civil aviation authority (DGAC).
Dublin-based carrier, Ryanair is reportedly in talks with manufacturers, with a view to ordering long-haul aircraft after its board approved plans to begin transatlantic flights.
Austrian Airlines has announced its plans to expand its North American offering to include five-weekly flights to Miami, as well as additional flights to destinations in Europe.
ECAir, Equatorial Congo Airlines, the national airline of the Republic of the Congo has announced its plans to launch a route to Dakar in Senegal via Bamako in Mali.
The Philippines is currently modernising and expanding its premier gateway and secondary airports to sustain its international market growth and improve the arrival and departure experience. Increased investment in these airports will drive international tourists and passengers to visit the Philippines.
Hungary is a fast growing tourism market for China, with last year showing a 19 per cent increase of Chinese visitors travelling to Budapest. In fact, estimates suggest a Chinese diaspora of over 40,000 in Hungary and demand or around 90,000 bi-directional passengers per annum.
