'China Southern Airlines' (中国南方航空公司) (, ) is an
airline based in
Guangzhou in the
Guangdong province of the
People's Republic of China. Operating domestic, regional and international services
[1], it is Asia's
largest airline in terms of fleet size and the largest in China in terms of passengers carried.
[2]
Its main operation hubs are
Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport and
Beijing Capital International Airport, with other focus cities at
Shenyang Taoxian International Airport,
Urumqi Diwopu International Airport,
Shenzhen Bao'an International Airport,
Wuhan Tianhe International Airport,
Zhengzhou Xinzheng International Airport and
Dalian Zhoushuizi International Airport.
China Southern Airlines is also accredited by
IATA with the IOSA (IATA Operations Safety Audit) for its safety practices.
[3]
History
The airline started operations in
1989. In June 1997 China Southern Airlines initial public stock offering on the
New York and
Hong Kong stock exchanges generated over $700 million. In July
2000,
Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC), selected China Southern as one of three airlines to lead the restructuring of China's air transport industry. It acquired
Zhongyuan Airlines on
4 August 2000. In January 2003 the airline absorbed
China Northern Airlines and its subsidiaries Beiya Airlines and China Northern Swan, as well as
China Xinjiang Airlines, into its domestic operations. In November 2004 the acquisition was completed as China Southern acquired the holding company that owned China Northern and China Xinjiang
.
In
2004, the company achieved a turnover of around 40 million passengers, becoming one of the top ten passenger carriers in the world. Among all Chinese airlines, it boasts the largest fleet with the most bases, most extensive domestic networks and highest flight frequencies. Renowned for its excellent passenger services, the airline has won Five-star Diamond Award for flight services and has been honoured as China's best airline by TTG Asia Magazine.
China Southern Airlines Boeing 777 at Beijing Capital International Airport in front of the new Terminal 3 expansion for the upcoming Beijing 2008 Olympics.
China Southern Boeing 777-200 at Kansai Airport in Osaka, Japan
It signed a Memorandum of Understanding on
August 28,
2004 with
SkyTeam Alliance, which it will then be able to join, thus becoming the first
mainland Chinese airline to enter a global airline alliance. They are scheduled to join in late
2007. Members of some SkyTeam mileage program are already able to earn and redeem miles on China Southern and so can members of China Southern Airlines' own frequent flyer programs, the SkyPearl club, for flights on some SkyTeam carriers.
[4]
On
January 29 2005, Flight 'CZ3097' became the first Chinese aircraft landing Taiwan in a legal situation after the separation for over 56 years. That was the effort of the arrangement of
"the Cross-strait Charter on Lunar New Year". The flight arrive at the Chiang Kai-shek International Airport(present
Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport) in
Taoyuan, Taiwan Province at local time 9:20 am. However, CZ3097 is not the earliest departed plane. The reason its being the first arrived is that the departure, Guangzhou, is closer to Taipei than
Air China's Beijing.(the two estimated taking-off at the same time)
The airline is owned by China Southern Air Holding (50.3%), private
Hong Kong and non-China investors (H shareholders) (26.84%) and private China investors (A shareholders) (22.86%). It has 34,417 employees as at March
2007.
Destinations
Cargo
China Southern Cargo the airlines freight branch serve points in USA, Europe and Asia.
Fleet
The China Southern Airlines operates the following aircraft as of March 2007:
Average fleet age is 7.0 years as of March 2007
[5]
Aircraft orders
★ Delivery of the first
Airbus A330-243 to China Southern Airlines took place on
25 February 2005, with the second in March 2005. It is the first operator of the type in China and has a further two on order due for delivery in the first half of 2005. The aircraft seats 266 passengers and will be operated mainly on medium and long range routes, including some possible new international routes.
★ China Southern Airlines has agreed a leasing deal for 9
Boeing 737-800 from
GECAS for 7 years, with deliveries to be completed by February
2006[6].
★ An agreement has been signed with Airbus for the purchase of 5
Airbus A380-800 aircraft for delivery in time for the
2008 Olympics. It is the first commitment for the type from a Chinese carrier. China Southern has also signed initial agreement for the purchase of 13
Boeing 787 aircraft, of which 3 would be for its affiliate
Xiamen Airlines. The aircraft would be delivered between 2008 and
2010[7].
★ The airline has placed an order for 10
Airbus A330 aircraft, also to be delivered in time for the 2008 Olympics
[8].
★ On the
7 July 2006 China Southern Airlines has confirmed a deal with Airbus covering the purchase of 50 more A320 narrowbodies for delivery from 2009.
★ In 2006, China Southern Airlines has placed an order of 6 B777 freighters, striding forward a brand new step in its cargo development.
[9]
★ In
August 2007, the airline announced its intention for an order for 55
Boeing 737-700/800 to be delivered from 2011. Details on how many of each variant is not yet available.
[10]
Codeshare agreements
China Southern Airlines has codeshare agreements with the following airlines:
★
Aeroméxico
★
Air France
★
Asiana Airlines
★
Delta Air Lines
★
Dragonair
★
Continental Airlines (begins November 1, 2007)
★
CSA Czech Airlines
★
Garuda Indonesia
★
Japan Airlines
★
KLM
★
Korean Air
★
Northwest Airlines
★
Pakistan International Airlines
Incidents and accidents
★ On
November 24 1992, Flight 3943, a
Boeing 737 jetliner (Reg. ), crashed in to a hill near
Guilin,
Guangxi, killing all 141 on board, due to an engine thrust malfunction.
[11]
★ On
May 8 1997,
Flight 3456, a
Boeing 737-300 jetliner (Reg. ), crashed on approach into
Shenzhen Bao'an International Airport killing 35, with 9 injured.
[12]
★ On
August 22 2006, flight CZ325 from Guangzhou, China to Sydney, Australia had to be turned back to Guangzhou after a note had been found indicating a bomb was on board. The plane was returned to Guangzhou after one hour into the flight. Passengers were interviewed by police for two hours after landing, after which they were allowed back onto the plane to resume their journey. A 39-year-old Australian businessman of Hong Kong origin was arrested after Chinese police matched his handwriting with that of the threatening note found in the lavatory. He was allegedly to have told police that he had made the threat because he was lovesick and suffering from depression over a failed relationship, the Xinhua news agency was quoted as saying.
[13][14][15]
References
1. Directory: World Airlines
2. China Southern Airlines website, in Chinese
3. IATA
4. http://www.skyteam.com/EN/faq/index.jsp
5. China Southern Airlines Fleet Age
6. Airliner World, March 2005
7. Airliner World, April 2005
8. Find Articles
9. http://www.cs-air.com/en/nhsj/01/depa_info/index.htm
10. "China Southern to order 55 more 737s" Flight Global, 21 August 2007
11. AirDisaster.Com Accident Database
12. AirDisaster.Com Accident Database
13. News
14. MSN News
15. ABC News
External links
★
China Southern Airlines
★
China Southern Airlines Fleet Detail
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