Delayed flights will no longer cause headaches for travelers
between Beijing and Shanghai after today, now that five domestic
airline companies have cooperated to streamline travel procedures
between the two cities.
Air China, China Eastern Airlines, Shanghai Airlines Co Ltd,
China Southern Airlines Co Ltd, and Hainan Airlines have
rescheduled their flights to guarantee one leaves every half-hour
each day. Passengers traveling between the two cities will be able
to change their flights among the five airline companies if they
encounter delays.
The new arrangement of the flights between Beijing and Shanghai
was created to gain an advantage for airline companies in their
competition with railways, which now have trains able to make the
journey between the two cities in as little as 10 hours.
The companies aim to provide a three-hour service from check-in
to luggage claim in their Beijing-Shanghai flights. To aid in this
mission, Beijing Capital International Airport and Shanghai
Hongqiao Airport will offer exclusive check-in counters for the
Beijing-Shanghai flights from these five airline companies.
Even though travel may be faster, it will not be cheaper, as
ticket discounts from Beijing Capital International Airport to
Shanghai Hongqiao Airport can rarely be seen on airline
ticket-booking websites, like yoee.com and ctrip.com.
Most tickets are discounted by only 30 percent or less. Industry
insiders say this wide range of ticket prices will bring
difficulties to the cooperation of airline companies, Shanghai
Business Daily reported today.
The General Civil Aviation Administration (CAAC) plans for a
trial stage of the Beijing-Shanghai streamlined airline service to
take place from today to October 27. It also plans to expand the
service to Guangzhou and Shenzhen, China's southeastern economic
hubs.
4.18 million passengers flew between Beijing and Shanghai last
year, accounting for a major 2.98 percent of international airline
traffic as a whole.
(China.org.cn by Wu Jin, August 6, 2007)
