Air China (Chinese: 中国国际航空公司, Zhōngguó Guójì Hángkōng Gōngsī, literally "Chinese International Aviation Company", abbreviated 国航) is the People's Republic of China's state owned and largest commercial airline (not to be confused with China Airlines, which is the Republic of China (Taiwan)'s state airline), and the only airline to fly the PRC national flag on its entire fleet. Its logo is a phoenix in the form of the abbreviation VIP.

Code data

• IATA Code: CA
• ICAO Code: CCA
• Callsign: Air China

History

Air China was setup in 1988 upon the sub-division of the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) to fly international routes although it also operated a few domestic sectors. Its main hub is Beijing Capital International Airport. Further deregulation of the aviation business took place in 1994, enabling foreign investment in airports and facilitating the import of aircraft built outside mainland China. By 1996 the country had 108 airports with scheduled airline services and around 30 different airlines.

On April 15, 2002, Air China flight 129, a Boeing 767-200ER jet from Beijing to Pusan, crashed into a hill while trying to land at Gimhae International Airport during inclement weather, killing 128 of the 166 people on board. To date, this has been Air China's lone blemish in its safety record.

During 2004 as part of a consolidation of the Chinese aviation industry Air China absorbed China Southwest Airlines and Zhejiang Airlines. In December the company listed its shares on the Hong Kong and London Stock Exchanges.

Since the reunification of Hong Kong with the mainland, competition from Cathay Pacific Airways and Dragonair Cargo on international routes has been allowed to continue.

Fleet

Air China's fleet is predominantly sourced from Boeing although some airliners have been acquired from Airbus, including examples of the long range A340. Five of the airline's Boeing 747 fleet are cargo-carrying aircraft. A couple of Lockheed Hercules aircraft superseded Antonov 12s in the freighter role. Four British Aerospace 146 "Whisperjet" passenger aircraft were returned to the United Kingdom during 2003 and are parked at Southend Airport in Essex.

Air China's current fleet (as of December 2004) consists of the following:

• 14 Airbus A319-100
• 5 Airbus A320-200
• 6 Airbus A340-300
• 38 Boeing 737-300 (Two other B733s were recently retired from commercial service and are now used for training purposes only)
• 6 Boeing 737-600
• 8 Boeing 737-700
• 17 Boeing 737-800
• 4 Boeing 747-200F (Freighter)
• 4 Boeing 747-400
• 8 Boeing 747-400M (Combi)
• 1 Boeing 747-400F (Freighter)
• 13 Boeing 757-200
• 5 Boeing 767-200ER (Extended Range)
• 4 Boeing 767-300
• 5 Boeing 767-300ER (Extended Range)
• 10 Boeing 777-200

Destinations

See Air China destinations

Present

The parent company of Air China is in talks with Swire Group, the largest shareholder of Cathay Pacific, for merger talks that will see Air China swallowing Cathay Pacific, and Cathay Pacific acquiring a majority stake of Dragonair, in return for the Swire Group becoming the largest individual shareholder of Air China's parent company.

External Links

• Air China
• Air China Fleet Detail
• Air China Passenger Opinions

See also: List of Chinese companies