Hainan Air hits high note with Dalian service

“The numbers over the first two weeks have been very promising,” said P S Tan, managing director of Maple Aviation, at a welcome dinner reception for the airline last week. “In fact, we are pushing to have another flight because two weekly flights are not enough to
cater to the demand.”

He noted that the route, which uses the Boeing B737-800, had a good mix of leisure and business travellers. Dalian is known for being a business destination, while Hefei has a cultural appeal that draws tourists.

Changi Airport Group's director of market development, Lim Ching Kiat, said that with Hefei being a new link for the airport, the route offered a new destination for
Singaporeans, who were already seasoned travellers to popular Chinese cities like Shanghai. He added that rising incomes in China's secondary cities also meant that more Chinese were starting to venture out, with many visiting Singapore for the first time.

Lim added that the airport was keen to bring together travel agents from Singapore and China, through networking sessions for example, to grow traffic between the two countries.

(Sources: Gracia Chiang, Singapore)