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BEIJING: China’s airlines and airports have been
put on notice to cut delays and improve performance in time for the
Olympic Games or face harsh penalties, state media reported
Saturday.
Airlines risk losing domestic
routes and face two-year expansion bans if they fail to improve, the
China Daily quoted officials as saying.
Flight delays and cancellations
are common here and officials are concerned about potential damage
to China’s image during the August 8 to 24 Games, the report said.
From July to September, domestic
airlines must stop overbooking tickets for domestic flights and have
at least one plane on standby at key airports in case of unforeseen
delays, Yang Guoqing, vice-minister of the General Administration of
Civil Aviation of China, was quoted as saying.
An expected 500,000 foreigners
will fly to China during the Olympics, adding further strain on an
industry that has yet to come to terms with massive expansion.
Air traffic volume soared 16
percent to 185 million passengers in 2007, according to official
figures, which predict that volume will surge another 14 percent in
2008.
The new head of the
administration, Li Jiaxiang, said this week that rapid expansion had
under–mined safety and government curbs on industry growth would
be introduced next year to ensure airline safety.
--AFP
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