Juneyao eyes launch of budget airline
Currently, there is only one budget carrier, Spring Airlines, operating on the mainland, home to the second-largest aviation market in the world.
Shanghai-based Juneyao Airlines has applied for permission to set up a low-cost carrier in Guangzhou.
Juneyao wants to tap the low-cost market in the Pearl River Delta, which is populated with migrant workers and holidaymakers. This is also the market targeted by Jetstar Hong Kong, which is still waiting for its operating licence.
"We have handed in our application to the regulator [the Civil Aviation Administration of China] and expect to get the feedback very soon," said Edwin Choi, an assistant to the chairman of Juneyao Airlines.
To be named Jiuyuan Airlines, or "nine dollars" in Chinese, the carrier would target domestic flights to begin with, before expanding to regional destinations in Asia later, Choi said.
Currently, there is only one budget carrier, Spring Airlines, operating on the mainland, home to the second-largest aviation market in the world.
Low-cost carriers account for less than 5 per cent of the total seat capacity on the mainland, against 24 per cent in the rest of Asia.