Chinese airlines are offering discounted tickets to attract lost passengers due to the rise in fuel costs, the Chongqing Evening News reported on Nov. 10.
Airlines in the country raised fuel surcharge for routes shorter than 800 kilometers from 20 yuan to 40 yuan and longer than 800 kilometers from 40 yuan to 70 yuan per capita for adult passengers starting Oct. 27.
After the re-imposition of the fuel surcharge, many people chose to take flights in early morning or late night, because those flights often offer discounts.
Passengers of daytime flights have been reduced by 30 percent for some airlines, the report said.
Major Chinese carriers, including Air China, China Southern Airlines, China Eastern Airlines and Shandong Airlines, plan to lower ticket prices for daytime flights by 10 to 20 percent to secure more passengers.
China Southern Airlines, Air China and China Eastern Airlines, for instance, consumed 3.31, 2.99 and 2.6 million tons of aviation fuel individually in 2009, according to their financial statements quoted by the report.
As 70 to 80 percent of their flights are domestic, the nation's three biggest carriers will all face an increased expense of 400 to 580 million yuan annually with domestic aviation fuel prices raised by 220 yuan per ton.
The specially-priced flight tickets plus the fuel fees are sometimes even cheaper than railway tickets.
The CRH train ticket from Guangzhou to Wuhan is 780 yuan and the travel time is about three hours and 15 minutes; while the special-price flight ticket auctioned online costs 263 yuan and the flight takes one hour and 40 minutes, the Dongguan Times reported.
Airlines in the country raised fuel surcharge for routes shorter than 800 kilometers from 20 yuan to 40 yuan and longer than 800 kilometers from 40 yuan to 70 yuan per capita for adult passengers starting Oct. 27.
After the re-imposition of the fuel surcharge, many people chose to take flights in early morning or late night, because those flights often offer discounts.
Passengers of daytime flights have been reduced by 30 percent for some airlines, the report said.
Major Chinese carriers, including Air China, China Southern Airlines, China Eastern Airlines and Shandong Airlines, plan to lower ticket prices for daytime flights by 10 to 20 percent to secure more passengers.
China Southern Airlines, Air China and China Eastern Airlines, for instance, consumed 3.31, 2.99 and 2.6 million tons of aviation fuel individually in 2009, according to their financial statements quoted by the report.
As 70 to 80 percent of their flights are domestic, the nation's three biggest carriers will all face an increased expense of 400 to 580 million yuan annually with domestic aviation fuel prices raised by 220 yuan per ton.
The specially-priced flight tickets plus the fuel fees are sometimes even cheaper than railway tickets.
The CRH train ticket from Guangzhou to Wuhan is 780 yuan and the travel time is about three hours and 15 minutes; while the special-price flight ticket auctioned online costs 263 yuan and the flight takes one hour and 40 minutes, the Dongguan Times reported.
