China Southern Airlines, the country's largest carrier by fleet
size, said Thursday it had become the 11th full member of the
global airline alliance, Skyteam.
China Southern is the first domestic carrier to join the global
alliance, which will carry 428 million passengers annually through
a worldwide system of 16,400 daily flights to 841 destinations in
162 countries.
"We are excited to welcome China Southern into our network. This
move allows us to offer our customers unparalleled access to the
markets they want to reach," said Leo van Wijk, chairman of the
Skyteam Governing Board, in a press release.
"China Southern's membership strengthens the alliance's position
in serving the world's fastest growing markets."
As the first domestic carrier to operate its own terminal at
Beijing Capital International Airport, China Southern is expected
to help the alliance bolster its global hub network.
China Southern is the nation's largest airline in terms of fleet
size and the number of flights and passengers. It operates more
than 600 domestic and international routes serving 152 cities.
Liu Shaoyong, China Southern chairman, said the alliance would
help his company accelerate the progress toward
internationalization.
"China Southern will make use of Skyteam's network to expand
cooperation with all the other members and better serve customers,"
said Liu.
The airline said that Chinese passengers would be able to get
information at any of Skyteam's more than 2,100 ticket offices
worldwide for travel arrangements as well as discounts offered by
Skyteam.
International passengers can obtain flight and travel assistance
from any member airline of Skyteam.
"We fully support airlines joining global alliances, which will
help China's civil aviation industry acquire expertise and improve
management and service quality," said Yang Yuanyuan, head of the
General Administration of Civil Aviation (CAAC).
Vice Premier Zeng Peiyan said China Southern's entry into the
alliance would improve the competitiveness of China's aviation
industry on the international market.
It would also promote the cooperation between alliance members,
who would benefit from each other, said Zeng.
Such alliances would enable airline companies to share
resources, pool risks and improve operating efficiency, Zeng
said.
He said China would stick to the opening-up policy and encourage
the aviation industry to carry out international exchanges and
cooperation.
Skyteam, one of the three major civil aviation alliances in the
world, has 11 full members, including Aeroflot, Aeromexico, Air
France, Alitalia, China Southern Airlines, Continental Airlines,
Czech Airlines, Delta Air Lines, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Korean
Air and Northwest Airlines.
Its three associate members are Air Europa, Copa Airlines and
Kenya Airways.
Air China, the country's flagship carrier, is scheduled to join
the Star Alliance next month.
(Xinhua News Agency November 16, 2007)
