Regional Round-Up
Jetstar Hong Kong applies for AOC
July 1st 2012
Jetstar Hong Kong, a US$198 million joint venture of Australian low-cost operator (LCC), Jetstar, and China Eastern Airlines (CEA), has applied to the Hong Kong aviation authorities for an air operator’s certificate (AOC). Read More »
CEA chairman, Liu Shaoyang, confirmed the application in Beijing during the recent International Air Transport Association summit and said he was confident Hong Kong’s Air Transport Licensing Authority would be supportive of the LCC’s application.
The proposed airline, which would also need to be classified as a designated Hong Kong airline to operate from the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), announced plans earlier this year to launch short-haul regional services from Hong Kong, particularly to secondary cities in Mainland China.
However, many analysts remain sceptical about the planned carrier’s take off. They argue that a joint venture between a regional, Australian-owned LCC and a Mainland Chinese carrier could not satisfy HKSAR legal requirements that its principal place of business was in Hong Kong.
