China May Ease Restricted Airspace
- From: cnw <cnw@xxxxxxx>
- Date: Mon, 21 Aug 2006 12:32:02 +0800
China May Ease Restricted Airspace for Europe Flights (Update2)
Aug. 18 (Bloomberg) -- China's aviation regulator and air force are in talks
with the International Air Transport Association to open three air corridors
through the country to reduce flying time from Europe, the airline industry
group said.
The group, also called IATA, has proposed three shorter routes for flights to
reach Hong Kong, Shanghai and southern China's Guangzhou from Europe, said the
association's chief executive Giovanni Bisignani. IATA represents 265 global
carriers.
``China is exploding in traffic,'' Bisignani said in a Wednesday interview in
Sydney. ``What the industry needs is more routes to avoid delays or problems
with operations.''
Air France-KLM, British Airways Plc and other Europe-based carriers expect more
tourists will head to China for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing and 2010 World Expo
in Shanghai. Air travel in the country, the world's fourth-largest economy, may
grow 8 percent a year until 2023, overcrowding the skies as 70 percent of the
airspace is reserved for military use.
Shorter routes help airlines cut fuel expenses. This year, record jet kerosene
prices may cause combined losses of $3 billion for the global industry. Jet
fuel, which accounts for as much as 30 percent of airlines' operating expenses,
has risen 23.4 percent so far this year, according to Bloomberg data. Jet fuel
traded in Singapore fell 1.8 percent to $88.10 on Thursday.
Cutting Costs
``This is part of the general push to help airlines reduce operating costs,''
said Peter Hilton, research head for transport and conglomerates at Credit
Suisse in Hong Kong. Airlines have been lobbying for shorter routes including
those through air space deemed sensitive as they ``seek ways to shorten their
flying time, which can result in fuel savings,'' he said.
Ma Songwei, a Beijing-based spokesman for the Civil Aviation Administration of
China, said he can't comment on ongoing negotiations.
China opened a route in April through its western Qinghai province, allowing up
to 110 weekly flights from Europe to skirt the Himalayas to reach Shanghai and
Guangzhou.
The route, known as IATA-1/Y-1, lets airlines fly aircraft that haven't been
fitted with additional oxygen equipment to reach Chengdu in central China. The
route can save carriers a combined 2,860 hours of flight time and 27,000 tonnes
of fuel annually, according to IATA's estimates. Two of the group's proposed
routes are extensions of the new route.
Iata-II, Iata-III
IATA-II would go through Sanjiang in southern China's Guangxi province to reach
Guangzhou and Hong Kong, shortening the flying distance to Guangzhou from Europe
by 70 nautical miles (129.6 kilometers). This would cut annual fuel usage by an
estimated 6,000 metric tons and eliminate 19,000 tons of carbon dioxide
emission, IATA said.
IATA-III would take planes through Luogang in Anhui province before reaching
Shanghai, reducing the flying distance to China's premier commercial city from
Europe by about 200 nautical miles, the industry group said.
Air France-KLM operates two daily non-stop flights to Shanghai from Paris and
five weekly non-stop services to Guangzhou from the French capital. British
Airways flies four days a week to Shanghai from London while Virgin Atlantic
Airways has six weekly services between the two cities.
Olympic Bypass
IATA has proposed a third route, aimed at helping flights from Europe avoid
Beijing's overcrowded airspace to reach Shanghai, Guangzhou and Hong Kong.
The so-called Olympic Bypass cuts through Mongolia's airspace to Baotou in
northern China's Inner Mongolia province. It can reduce fuel usage by 12,500
tons and eliminate 39,500 tons of carbon dioxide emission a year, IATA said.
IATA wants to establish a route that skirts Beijing to reach southern China from
Europe. A record 155 million people, including 4.4 million foreign tourists, may
visit Beijing in 2008 when the city plays host to the world's largest sports
event, according to an estimate by the Beijing Organizing Committee for the
Olympic Games.
``The new routes will enhance the efficiency of China's airspace'' and put
``China in good stead for the Beijing Olympics,'' said Albert Tjoeng, IATA's
Asia-Pacific spokesman in Singapore. ``The Chinese government has a clear
understanding of the benefits of a successful air transport sector.''
To contact the reporter on this story: Eugene Tang in Beijing on
eugenetang@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Last Updated: August 17, 2006 23:31 EDT
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