CHINA's airline gained a profit of CNY1.78 billion (US$260.8 million) from CNY45.6 billion revenue in the first quarter, according to Wang Boxue, spokesman for the China Aviation Industry Corporation Development Research Institute.

Mr Wang said the domestic air industry's quarterly cargo and mail volume fell 13.5 per cent year on year while passenger volume rose 14.6 per cent, reported Logistics Week.

Demand for air cargo transport in this period were mostly on international routes, he said while domestic demand continues to falter.

Mr Wang said Chinese carriers have 67 freighters, which was nine more than in 2007, most of which were long-range aircraft. He predicted that air cargo will grow faster - 10.2 per cent - than the passenger sector in the next 20 years. By 2027, China's air cargo volume will hit 81 billion tonnes per kilometre and the number of freighters will reach 604.

As for the passenger sector, Mr Wang expected an 8.3-per-cent rate of growth over the next 20 years. He predicted that passenger volume will hit 14,000 persons per kilometre and the number of aircraft will reach 4,250 by 2027.

Source