CAG, Xiamen Airlines sign air services MOU

Singapore

CHANGI Airport Group (CAG) and China-based Xiamen Airlines have inked a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to work together on boosting connectivity and passenger traffic between the two countries.

Under the MOU - which spans till end-March 2018 - the airport operator and airline will ramp up air services between Singapore and China, including to new secondary and third-tier cities. They will also grow transit and transfer traffic from South-east Asia and the South-west Pacific to and from China, leveraging on Singapore as a hub.

In addition, dining offers and retail promotions will be rolled out at Changi to improve the travel experience for passengers.

Said CAG chief executive Lee Seow Hiang: "The Chinese market holds enormous potential. The signing of this MOU is a strategic step to enhance our connectivity through the establishment of more direct air services to new secondary and third-tier cities in China."

Where passenger traffic is concerned, Xiamen is the fourth biggest Chinese city for Changi Airport, after major destinations such as Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. The airline operates 28 services each week from Singapore to seven cities in China, namely Dalian, Fuzhou, Hangzhou, Tianjin, Xiamen, Xi'an and Zhengzhou.

The carrier is the only one that operates to Dalian, Fuzhou and Zhengzhou out of Changi.

Since 2009, Xiamen Airlines has seen its passenger traffic at Changi expand by a compounded annual growth rate of 9 per cent. In 2014 - a year when traffic from China to Singapore slumped significantly following the two Malaysia Airlines tragedies - Xiamen Airlines still managed to chalk up a 5 per cent increase in its passenger traffic between the two countries.

For the first five months of this year, Xiamen Airlines' traffic at Changi has risen in the double digits, increasing 28 per cent year on year. Meanwhile, overall passenger traffic growth at Changi has been flat for the first five months of this year, at around 21.95 million passengers.

Xiamen Airlines chairman and president, Che Shanglun, added: "South-east Asia, and in particular Singapore, is an important market for Xiamen Airlines. We are very happy to further our strategic partnership and look forward to continuing our close collaboration with CAG to provide a convenient and comfortable travel experience for more travellers in the future."

Xiamen Airlines is a member of the SkyTeam Alliance and has a fleet of 119 Boeing aircraft. It recently expanded its network of over 250 international and domestic routes with its maiden foray into Europe with the launch of its Xiamen-Amsterdam route this month.