Airline News
Graft Probe at CSA, HNA signs financing deals, AVIC consolidates
October 16th 2015
The Mainland’s anti-graft campaign continues in full swing as Liu Qian, a deputy manager in charge of operations at China Southern Airlines (CSA), was taken away for investigation last Friday, the South China Morning Post has reported. Read More » A company spokesman said he was "not aware of the situation" and "everything was normal", but he declined to comment on whether Liu was performing his role. Liu, 52, joined CSA in 2004 from the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC). In January, four senior executives, including CFO Xu Jiebo, were detained for "job-related crimes", following an inspection by the Communist Party's Central Commission for Discipline Inspection.
Meanwhile, HNA Group has received loans from the Export-Import Bank of China to fund its 6.2% investment in South Africa's Comair “to realize and deepen the civil aviation cooperation between China and Africa”. In separate events, HNA Group has committed to leasing five B787-9s from Avolon in a deal valued at $1.3 billion, subject to Avolon’s sale to HNA’s Bohai Leasing for $31-a-share going through.
In other news, Reuters has reported Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) is consolidating its three aircraft engine manufacturing units – Sichuan Chengfa Aero-Science and Technology, AVIC Aero-Engine Controls and AVIC Aviation Engine Corp – an executive at one of the units said, as part of a wider restructuring of the state-owned aerospace and defence company aimed at boosting competitiveness. Industry executives say AVIC is likely to merge the three subunits to create a single company that would be better placed to make globally competitive engines that could help China ease its reliance on engines from the likes of CFM International, Pratt & Whitney and Rolls-Royce.
In the interim, Mainland carrier Kunming Airlines, a Shenzhen Airlines subsidiary, has promised to stop bullying by members of its staff after news leaked this week about new cabin crew traditionally being forced to lie in aircraft overhead luggage lockers after completing 30 to 50 hours service at the airline. Pictures of cabin crew forced into lockers went viral after they were posted online over the weekend. The carrier said the bullying was carried out after cabin crew had completed their duties, and the safety of flights was never affected. It then issued a statement saying "the company attached high importance to the incident and would prevent such things from happening again."
