The long-awaited Macau-based budget airline is about to take off. A venture formed by Air Macau, China National Aviation Co (CNAC) and Shun Tak will be incorporated today and is planning to operate flights to about 20 cities in the mainland and the region.
It is understood that Air Macau, which is majority-held by CNAC will hold 51 per cent of the new venture, while Shun Tak, which is controlled by the casino tycoon Stanley Ho, will share the balance with CNAC.
An official from the Macau Civil Aviation Authority said there was plenty of room for the new venture to flex its muscles due to the low utilisation rate of Macau's traffic rights.
'Macau has rights to fly to more than 30 mainland cities but at present only nine are ulitilised [by Air Macau],' said an official from the Macau Civil Aviation Authority.
Air Macau has launched services to the major first-tier cities in the mainland where the high income tourists and gamblers come from, namely Shanghai, Beijing, Xiamen, Nanjing and Shenzhen.
That means the new carrier could fly only to the second-tier cities which Air Macau did not cover. Market talk ahead of the today's incorporation, however, was that Air Macau had reached a deal with the new venture which would allow the new carrier to fly to the existing points that Air Macau served after a quarantine period of three years.