It was recently revealed by Meng Ping, deputy director general at the Transportation Department of Civil Aviation Administration (CAA), that the CAA is drafting its Twelfth Five-Year Plan in a bid to speed up China's civil aviation industry by building new civil airports and commissioning more airlines.
Another influencing factor is the promulgation of a low-altitude airspace management policy designed to open up low-altitude airspace for more private aviation. The upshot is experts predict that the Chinese mainland will become the fastest growing region in the world over the next decade. The emerging Chinese market, it is estimated, will need at least 1,200 business aircraft, and annual revenues are expected to reach 60 billion yuan.
Wings still clipped
However, restrictive factors still exist. Flying and maintaining a private jet is quite expensive, in the ball park of at least 400,000 yuan per month according to reporters at New Finance Economics.
The famous Chinese comedian Zhao Benshan spent more than 200 million yuan on a private business aircraft in 2010, which he discovered costs 15,000 yuan per hour to fly and consumes 10,000 yuan per hour in parking fees. Service and support facilities for private aircraft are also far from ideal. Currently, there are neither fueling stations nor maintenance berths designed specifically for private aircraft in China.
If that doesn't discourage buyers, the strict controlled exerted by the army over China's airspace means that private jetters need to apply for approval at various levels, making flight planning complicated and time consuming. Generally, a flight application needs to be submitted to the CAA a week ahead, and, in even emergencies, no later than 72 hours in advance. All that assumes you are deemed "good to go." Consider the experience of Li Linhai, a businessman in Shanghai who was approved to fly his plane two years after he bought it.
As a result, the reputation the private aircraft has for providing the advantage of fast transportation is hardly a dream come true, at least not to date. Yang Xiaonong, an early consultant on the civil aviation scene in China, noted the industry here may experience sluggish growth in the short term due to the rigid controls maintained over air traffic in general.
