Guangzhou’s new LCC cleared for launch
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9 Air, the first low-cost carrier to be based in Guangzhou, has been given permission to commence operations.
According to a statement on the website of Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC), 9 Air has been given its Air Operator’s Certificate (AOC), enabling it to launch flights from Guangzhou’s Baiyun International Airport, under the ‘AQ’ code.
The new LCC is a subsidiary of Shanghai-based Juneyao Airlines, which will initially provide it with two Boeing 737-800 aircraft plus pilots, flight attendants and engineers. But 9 Air’s operations are expected to expand rapidly; in May this year the airline penned a deal with Boeing for 50 new B737 aircraft, and the airline plans to reach a total fleet size of 60 aircraft by 2020.
Initially, 9 Air plans to launch scheduled flights from Guangzhou to Zhanjiang and Jieyang in Guangdong province, plus major Chinese cities including Shanghai, Nanjing, Wenzhou, Guiyang and Harbin. It also plans to launch international services to Southeast Asia.
9 Air joins a growing list of Chinese LCCs, which now includes Spring Airlines, China West Air and China United Airlines. At Guangzhou’s Baiyun International Airport it will be based alongside China Southern Airlines, Asia’s largest airline in terms of passenger traffic.
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