ETW STAFF – Mumbai
Air China, the national flag carrier of China and a member of Star Alliance Group, has completed a successful maiden year of operations from Mumbai, India. Besides Mumbai, Air China flies from Bengaluru and New Delhi with a total of 11 weekly flights serving from India. These connect to over 185 destinations across the globe including all domestic destinations of China and major airports of Japan, Australia, USA, Canada and Europe.
In 2012-13, the average load factor was 85 per cent and the frequency of flights was increased from three to four flights a week on ex-Mumbai to accommodate the passenger load. Currently, it has been observed that 65 per cent of travel to China is business, while 35 per cent leisure and VFR (visiting friends and relatives).
Tang Zhongling, GM, Air China Mumbai said, “This has been a successful year for Air China in Mumbai. We are pleased with our performance and overwhelmed with the welcome we received. The passenger load has been growing, encouraging us to increase our flights from India to other cities in China. We are looking forward to our coming years in India, each marking a new achievement and milestone.”
Subhash Goyal, chairman, STIC Travel Group (STIC represents Air China in West & South India), commented, “We have been promoting Air China as their representatives for more than two decades and are proud to be a part of their growth in India. Trade and Tourism between India and China has been growing at a rapid pace with trade increasing from US$ 2.92 billion in 2000 to US$ 66.57 billion in 2012. We look forward to developing this route and working towards increasing Air China’s footprint to multiple cities across India.”
