Paul Lewis/SINGAPORE
CHINA NATIONAL Aviation's (CNAC) planned start-up carrier China Hongkong Airlines is considering operating domestic services within China as well as flights to Hong Kong.
The company is moving quickly to begin operations as soon as it is granted a Hong Kong Air Operator's Certificate. CNAC has already appointed New Zealander Mike Scollay as its chief pilot and is looking for Boeing 737-300 crews with UK-recognised Air Transport Pilot Licences.
Prospective pilots are being offered three-year contracts and will be required to fly between Hong Kong and China, and possibly on Chinese domestic routes. CNAC's parent body, the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC), has until now barred foreign crews from operating on domestic routes with Chinese carriers.
CNAC is already operating 737 charter flights from Hong Kong to three mainland destinations using China Southwest Airlines aircraft. Senior industry sources have suggested that CNAC is intent on building up airline operations in China by absorbing struggling Chinese regional carriers, such as China Southwest.
China Hongkong, in the meantime, is likely to be granted an Air Operator's Certificate (AOC) as early as January 1996, according to Hong Kong's Civil Aviation Department.
Industry sources, however, are warning that, beyond getting an AOC, China Hongkong will still need to obtain a licence to launch scheduled air services, or a permit to operate charter flights. Cathay Pacific in the past has argued that CNAC cannot be a Hong Kong-designated carrier as its principal place of business in not in the colony.
Source: Flight International
