Sichuan Airlines, a mid-sized Chinese carrier, is in talks with Taiwan’s TransAsia Airways to set up a joint venture airline. Which is, perhaps, yet another sign of the move towards a normalization of relationships between the Mainland and Taiwan.

A spokeswoman said, ‘We have been in discussions with TransAsia to form a joint venture.’ She added that details of the proposed partnership had yet to be finalized.’

Sichuan Airlines, partly owned by China Southern Airlines, according to it web site operates more than 130 routes, almost entirely within China, with a fleet of 40 aircraft.

TransAsia Airways is an airline based in Taiwan. It mainly serves the domestic market but also has limited scheduled international services to Macau and South Korea and charter services to some holiday destinations.

TransAsia was formed in 1951 as one of the first private civil airline in Taiwan, flying the Taipei - Hualien - Taitung - Kaohsiung route. It also served as local agent of foreign airlines and provided airport ground handling services for foreign airlines.

Air services ceased in 1958 when the management of the airline decided to concentrate their attention on their agency businesses. It established its airline meal catering services in the same year.

Domestic flights were resumed in 1988, after an absence in the market for 30 years. First scheduled international services started in 1995 to Macau and Surabaya.
Source: Reuters and research.

Ameco Beijing, an aircraft maintenance joint venture between Air China and Lufthansa, will start construction on an RMB47 million warehouse this month.

Ameco said in a statement that the 8,000 square meter facility, which should be operational by October next year, will store civil aviation materials and maintenance tools.

Air China holds a 60% stake in Ameco Beijing while Lufthansa holds the remaining 40%. The joint venture is based at Beijing Capital International Airport.

A Chinese company and a Russian aviation institute have agreed to launch a private airplane production project in northeast China’s Jilin Province.

The cooperative venture, with a total investment of RMB800 million ($106 million), is expected to produce 500 two-seat and four-seat light aircraft and seaplanes for private use every year with an estimated revenue of RMB800 million.

Jilin-based Dingxin Technology and the Moscow Aviation Institute will be the two owners.

The Chinese company will hold 60% and the remaining 40% will belong to the institute. It will be located in the Jilin Municipal Economic Development Zone nearly 100 km east of the provincial capital Changchun.

Matveenko Alexander, principal of the institute, said the planes are likely to enter the northeast Asian market after the project is put into operation.

Which raises the small problem of where the planes will fly in China. As matters stand the control of air space means that general aviation — the term used for small aircraft being used for private business and pleasure — has little space in which to manouever. No doubt this will change now that China is going to produce its own light aircraft.

The illustration is of a Chinese light aircraft, the Little Hawk-500, which is about to start a spin test in Xi’an. This was the last in a series of flight-tests and the aircraft waltzed through it. This was the first time civil aviation had had this test in China.
Source: China.org.cn

This is the way it might be more and more in the future. Air France-KLM Group and China Southern Airlines agreed to have exclusive discussion over the creation of a cargo joint venture in China. Air France-KLM Group and China Southern Airlines already have extensive cooperation in both passenger and cargo services.

Further details of the joint venture will be announced later after the discussions.

China Southern Airlines is the largest carrier in China in terms of fleet, routes and annual passenger carrying capacity. It operates more than 600 domestic and international routes with destinations to 152 cities throughout China and the world.

In 2006, China Southern Airlines carried 49.21 million passengers and was the only airline on the Chinese mainland to rank in the world’s top ten passenger carrying airlines.
Source: People’s Daily Online

This is the way it might be more and more in the future. Air France-KLM Group and China Southern Airlines agreed to have exclusive discussion over the creation of a cargo joint venture in China. Air France-KLM Group and China Southern Airlines already have extensive cooperation in both passenger and cargo services.

Further details of the joint venture will be announced later after the discussions.

China Southern Airlines is the largest carrier in China in terms of fleet, routes and annual passenger carrying capacity. It operates more than 600 domestic and international routes with destinations to 152 cities throughout China and the world.

In 2006, China Southern Airlines carried 49.21 million passengers and was the only airline on the Chinese mainland to rank in the world’s top ten passenger carrying airlines.
Source: People’s Daily Online