16 Dec 2019

China Aviation Industry Newsletter 16 December

Boeing Enhances 787 Dreamliner Pilot Training Capability in China Boeing celebrated the completion of an upgrade to its 787-8 Dreamliner simulator at its Shanghai-based training campus. The new configuration upgrades the platform to support China's most popular Dreamliner model--the 787-9. The simulator's new configuration was certificated by Civil Aviation Administration of China in October. The 787 simulator at Boeing Shanghai Aviation Flight Training Co., Ltd., located at Shanghai Pudong International Airport, entered into service in 2011, configured for the 787-8, the company's first Dreamliner model and the first to operate in the China market. The larger 787-9 was introduced in China in 2016, and has since become the backbone of China's Dreamliner fleet, as it carries more passengers and flies further than the 787-8. Last month, Boeing delivered the 100th direct-buy 787 by the Chinese airline industry--a 787-9 Dreamliner operated by Juneyao Airlines. BOC Aviation Announces Board And Senior Management Changes BOC Aviation announced changes to its Board of Directors and senior management due to retirement. Mr. Wang Jian will retire from his role as an Executive Director, the Vice Chairman of the Board, Deputy Managing Director and a member of the Strategy and Budget Committee on 31 December 2019. Replacing Mr. Wang as Executive Director, the Vice Chairman of the Board, Deputy Managing Director and a member of the Strategy and Budget Committee from 1 January 2020 is Mdm. Zhang Xiaolu. Mdm. Zhang. Mr. Phang Thim Fatt will step down from his role as Deputy Managing Director and Chief Financial Officer on 30 September 2020 and will remain with the Company to ensure a smooth transition of his duties until his retirement on 31 December 2020. He will be replaced by Mr. Steven Townend, who will be appointed as Deputy Managing Director and Chief Financial Officer with effect from 1 October 2020. China Spring Festival air travel expected to soar Passenger trips by air are poised to hit a record high in the upcoming Spring Festival travel rush, according to a news release by the Civil Aviation Administration of China. The 40-day Spring Festival travel rush for 2020 will begin on 10 January and end on 18 February, China Daily reported. According to the release, the civil aviation sector will handle 79 million passenger trips during the travel rush, a projected year-on-year rise of 8.4%. China says it expects tourism shift away from US, Australia to Asia for Lunar New Year period China's aviation regulator said that they expect a decline in airline capacity and bookings to the US and Australia over the Lunar New Year period for the first time in four years - owing to a shift in tourist destinations. The body said that Japan, Thailand and South Korea will rank among the most popular destinations for Chinese travelers for the holiday period early next year instead. China Southern Airlines, to Use Unisys AirCore® Passenger Sales and Service Application via TravelSky Unisys Corporation announced that TravelSky has migrated China Southern Airlines to the Unisys AirCore^® next-generation passenger system to streamline and modernize passenger sales and service (PSS) applications. China Southern is the largest airline in Asia by fleet size and total passengers. It is the third of TravelSky's airline clients to migrate to AirCore. "China has the world's second-largest domestic passenger market behind only the U.S., and Asia Pacific represents more than one-third of the global international air passenger and cargo markets," said Rick Mayhew, vice president and general manager, Unisys Asia Pacific. "We are delighted to help China Southern Airlines access a flexible system to quickly respond to capacity changes and to interact with their customers via a variety of channels." Cumulative Change for Good Donations Reach HK$193 Million Cathay Pacific Airways and the Hong Kong Committee for UNICEF (UNICEF HK) announced that "Change for Good", the airline's inflight fundraising programme, raised a total of HK$9.55 million over the 2018 programme period. The money was raised by collecting spare change in many different currencies from travellers on Cathay Pacific flights. Cathay Pacific Director Customer Mr Simon Large said, "We greatly appreciate the generosity of our passengers and the efforts of our staff in supporting Change for Good over the years. Thanks to their kindness, the programme has raised an incredible HK$193 million by the end of 2018. Cathay Pacific firmly believes in the power of collaborative efforts to affect positive change. As such, we are encouraged to see these donations have transformed into practical actions that are helping to make the world a better place." Honda Aircraft Begins HondaJet Deliveries in China The HondaJet Elite fleet has expanded to China, with the first in-country delivery to Honsan General Aviation, Honda Aircraft’s dealer in China. This follows Chinese CAAC validation of the very-light jet in August. “Delivering the first HondaJet to China is a significant milestone for Honda Aircraft,” said Honda Aircraft president and CEO Michimasa Fujino. “We will continue to showcase the many benefits of very-light jet travel with the HondaJet Elite.” Fujino added Honda Aircraft strives not only to highlight the benefits of the HondaJet but also to “add value to the general aviation industry in China and eventually revolutionize it.” Acumen Aviation © 16 December 2019 All Rights Reserved.