China Southern Airlines said profit jumped to a record on the back of a stronger yuan and as the carrier focused on profitable domestic routes. Net income rose 18% to CNY5.96b (US$950m) last year while revenue rose 11% to CNY127b, the airline said Monday. A strengthening yuan provided tailwind as an appreciating local currency makes it less expensive to repay dollar-denominated debt raised to pay for aircraft. The yuan rose 6.7% against the greenback in 2017. After adding too many direct flights to destinations including Paris, Sydney and New York, the country’s top 3 govt-controlled carriers are now directing their efforts on higher ticket prices for inland flights amid a boom in travel. The air-safety regulator’s caps on flight slots also led to higher fares and slower decline in passenger yields. <br/>
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China Airlines has moved 1 of its 2 daily Los Angeles International services to Ontario, California, in the eastern part of the metropolitan area, to get closer to ethnically Chinese people living there. The service from Taipei is the first direct Asian connection for Ontario International, the carrier said, adding that it “has now set its sights on the market for travel between Greater Los Angeles and Southeast Asia.” The San Gabriel Valley in eastern Los Angeles is a popular residential location for immigrants from Taiwan and China and their descendants. ONT is about 80km east of LAX. Boeing 777-300ERs are flying the Taipei-Ontario route, which opened March 25. The unusual move means that China Airlines has reduced its frequency at LAX to 1 flight a day. <br/>
Increasingly, passengers' fingerprints and faces are replacing boarding passes. Delta Air Lines is using the former in an attempt to whisk passengers through a checkpoint for its 50 domestic Delta Sky Clubs, it said Monday. The airline is working with Clear, a biometric technology company in which it has a minority stake, to implement the service following a pilot program. The program is free for Delta Sky Club members who are US citizens or permanent residents and it is optional. Travellers using the lounge generally have to show a boarding pass or membership card. Current members of Clear, a biometric security platform that scans travellers’ fingerprints and gives users dedicated security lane for $179 a year, can use their fingerprints on file to get into lounges immediately. <br/>
Air France Monday said it had joined the Kenya Airways-KLM joint venture after the Kenyan authorities gave the deal a regulatory approval. Anne Rigail, the executive VP of customer division at Air France, said that with the new agreement, air passengers will benefit from a streamlined travel experience between Europe and East Africa. "Air France, KLM and Kenya Airways' customers will be able to reserve flights operated on a code share basis by one of the 3 airlines between Paris-Nairobi and Amsterdam-Nairobi," Rigail said. KLM and Kenya Airways have been in a joint venture partnership since 1995. Rigail noted that as a result of the agreement, Air France will operate 3 weekly flights between Paris, Charles de Gaulle and Nairobi's main airport while Kenya Airways will offer 5 flights per week in the same route. <br/>