Chinese airlines flood world with super-cheap airfares
Chinese airlines are flooding the world with some of the lowest long-haul fares ever seen -- and delivering a hammer blow to foreign carriers trying to keep up. From Delta and American Airlines in the US, to Cathay Pacific Airways and Korean Air, many operators are feeling the squeeze from the extended reach of mainland Chinese carriers. They don’t just offer cheap fares on routes long-dominated by national airlines like Korean Air. They’re also adding hundreds of overseas flights from little-known Chinese cities to airports all over the world. “Chinese airlines are still hardly scratching the surface of their potential, not just in China, but globally,” said Will Horton, a Hong Kong-based analyst at the CAPA Centre for Aviation. “If an airline today cannot compete with or grow alongside a Chinese airline, the future will be bleak.” According to CAPA, mainland Chinese airlines have opened 75 long-haul markets since 2006, led by Air China and Hainan Airlines. More than two-thirds of those routes opened only in the past two years. China’s three biggest carriers -- Air China, China Eastern Airlines and China Southern -- are state-controlled and listed in Hong Kong and Shanghai. Cathay is conducting what it calls a “critical review” of its business. Delta President Glen Hauenstein said in October that China “continues to be challenged” as capacity growth outpaces demand. American Airlines President Robert D. Isom said the same month there’s “continued weakness in China” as excess capacity seeps into the airline’s new services from Los Angeles to Hong Kong, Haneda, Sydney and Auckland. A round trip with China Eastern between New York and Bangkok, via Shanghai, costs $570.06, according to Webjet.com. The same trip with United through Hong Kong costs $714.80. Flying from Los Angeles to Hong Kong with China Airlines is one third cheaper than with American Airlines. “US airlines dominated the China-US route in the past, but now it’s the Chinese airlines,” said Chen Suming, an analyst at Shanghai Chongyang Investment Management Co. “Most of the new air travelers are from China, not the US.”<br/>
https://portal.staralliance.com/cms/news/hot-topics/2016-12-13/general/chinese-airlines-flood-world-with-super-cheap-airfares
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Chinese airlines flood world with super-cheap airfares
Chinese airlines are flooding the world with some of the lowest long-haul fares ever seen -- and delivering a hammer blow to foreign carriers trying to keep up. From Delta and American Airlines in the US, to Cathay Pacific Airways and Korean Air, many operators are feeling the squeeze from the extended reach of mainland Chinese carriers. They don’t just offer cheap fares on routes long-dominated by national airlines like Korean Air. They’re also adding hundreds of overseas flights from little-known Chinese cities to airports all over the world. “Chinese airlines are still hardly scratching the surface of their potential, not just in China, but globally,” said Will Horton, a Hong Kong-based analyst at the CAPA Centre for Aviation. “If an airline today cannot compete with or grow alongside a Chinese airline, the future will be bleak.” According to CAPA, mainland Chinese airlines have opened 75 long-haul markets since 2006, led by Air China and Hainan Airlines. More than two-thirds of those routes opened only in the past two years. China’s three biggest carriers -- Air China, China Eastern Airlines and China Southern -- are state-controlled and listed in Hong Kong and Shanghai. Cathay is conducting what it calls a “critical review” of its business. Delta President Glen Hauenstein said in October that China “continues to be challenged” as capacity growth outpaces demand. American Airlines President Robert D. Isom said the same month there’s “continued weakness in China” as excess capacity seeps into the airline’s new services from Los Angeles to Hong Kong, Haneda, Sydney and Auckland. A round trip with China Eastern between New York and Bangkok, via Shanghai, costs $570.06, according to Webjet.com. The same trip with United through Hong Kong costs $714.80. Flying from Los Angeles to Hong Kong with China Airlines is one third cheaper than with American Airlines. “US airlines dominated the China-US route in the past, but now it’s the Chinese airlines,” said Chen Suming, an analyst at Shanghai Chongyang Investment Management Co. “Most of the new air travelers are from China, not the US.”<br/>
