Frustration at mysterious delays and abrupt diversions and cancellations have at times boiled over into violence at Chinese airports, with passengers trying to storm grounded aircraft and police having to be brought in to keep the peace. Deputy head of the civil aviation regulator, Yang Guoqing said authorities will punish airlines whose passengers refuse to disembark or misbehave in protest over problems like delayed flights. "We will severely punish airlines which experience aircraft occupations and......

Fasten your seat belts, this is not a test. Guangzhou Daily brings us this news today that on July 4th, Shanghai Airlines flight FM9105 encountered serious turbulence leaving twenty passengers injured on their flight from Shanghai to Beijing. According to one of the passengers, a Mr. Ma, the plane took off from Shanghai at 3:30 pm and was set to arrive in Beijing at 5:45 pm. "At around 5:20 pm, the plane suddenly lurched," reported......

The 60-seat China-made turboprop MA600 has been unveiled in Xi'an amid great fanfare. It is some 300 kilogrammes and 40 percent more fuel-efficient than its predecessor, the MA60, 122 orders of which have been received since it was introduced. While most of the foreign orders seem to be from African countries like Zimbabwe and Zambia — not the most exciting aviation markets — the China Aviation Industry Corporation has ambitious plans to take over its......

Shanghai travelers en route to Europe have never had it cheaper, but the real winners may be Hong Kong commuters. Newcomer Hong Kong Express Airways (which launched its first SH-HK flight only three days ago) announced Thursday that it will offer a monthly package for unlimited trips between the two cities, all for around 6,000 RMB. The deal is currently available in Hong Kong for HK$6,888 (6,086 RMB) a month, and the company reported that......

If you've been looking to fly to Europe for that much-needed break, ladies and gentlemen, that time is now. Air fares to Europe are at all-time lows and have never been cheaper in the six years that we've been here. Lufthansa leads the pack with the eye-popping offer of a return flight to Germany from Beijing at RMB3,760 and from Shanghai at RMB4,880. Air France has the very special web deal of a return tic......

After a successful month running at reduced capacity, the new Terminal 2 at Pudong Airport took another 18 airlines under its wing today. Whilst you should double check when you get to the airport (the airline who sold you the ticket may not be the one running the plane), the full list of airlines now operating from Pudong reads as follows:AeroflotAerosvit (Ukraine)Air CanadaAir China Air IndiaAir MacauAir New ZealandAlitaliaANA NipponAsiana (RoK)British AirwaysCathay PacificCebu PacificDragon AirEVA......

From yesterday until April 29th, this is the list of airlines which will use the new Terminal 2 at Pudong: FM Shanghai AirlinesBA British Airways VS Virgin (UK)NW Northwest (USA)5J Cebu (Philippines)GA Garuda (Indonesia)QF Qantas (Australia)AI Air IndiaAZ Alitalia (Italy)MH Malaysia AirlinesPR Philippine AirlinesQR Qatar AirwaysRA Royal NepalUN Transaero (Russia)VV Aerosvit (Ukraine) N.B Even though your ticket might say one airline, the actual flight could be being run by another airline. So it's still worth......

A former Immigration Minister of New Zealand, Tuariki John Delamere, has slammed the 76 percent state-owned Air New Zealand as a 'flying sweatshop' for paying its 30 Shanghai-based flight attendants a quarter of what its home-based crew was getting, and less than the legal minimum wage in New Zealand. Here's the mile-high wage gap as revealed by the New Zealand Herald:China-based flight attendants: Annual base pay NZ$6240 (RMB 35,200) Hourly rate (Herald calculation based on......

A new airport will be built in Beijing and scheduled to open by 2015. Even with a third terminal opening at Capital International Airport opening next month, Beijing will need a new airport to meet the rising demand for air travel as no further large-scale developments are being planned for Capital.Meanwhile, across China, a grand total of 97 new airports will be built by 2020.About 3,250 flights in all have been cancelled due to the......

Air Asia, Asia's first budget airline, has just announced its latest China destination. From now on, you can fly from Hangzhou (which is just a stone's throw from Shanghai) to Kuala Lumpur at a fraction of the price! We just did a quick check on their system and if you plan ahead of time, you can expect to pay around RMB1,115 (taxes included) for the flight. You can even select your own seats on the......

In part of China's ongoing Olympic makeover, Chinese airlines will face harsh penalties for delays and cancellations . New restrictions will set a cap on the daily number of flights and prevent airlines from overbooking flights. Certain airports will also keep an airplane on reserve in the event of mechanical problems. If problems persist, offending airlines could lose their domestic service or face two-year restrictions on further expansion. This sounds like good news for Chinese......

77% of China Eastern shareholders have voted against Singapore Airline's proposed HK$7 billion bid for a 24% stake in it. Disappointed by the results of the vote, China Eastern chairman Li Fenghua has vowed not to ally with Air China:"We will never consider Air China as a strategic investor. The most important thing is not the price. The most important thing is to improve China Eastern Airlines' brand and management." "There's not much difference between......

Looks like the much talked-about HK$7 billion bid by Singapore Airlines and its parent Temasek Holdings for a 24% stake in Shanghai's loss-making and debt-laden China Eastern Airlines may not happen just yet. Blocking the bid is its arch-rival and shareholder, Air China, as well as its parent China National Aviation Corp. (CNAC), which has now upped the ante by saying it would bid no less than HK$5 per share if shareholders vote against Singapore......

From Shanghai Daily:SHANGHAI issued an orange alert for heavy fog this morning. It was the first orange fog warning since winter began early this month. The Shanghai Meteorological Bureau issued a yellow alert for fog at 1am and upgraded it to orange about 5am. The alert was lowered at 10am this morning. Four international flights, with a total of 835 passengers, were diverted from Pudong International Airport and landed at Hongqiao Airport due to heavy......