01/08/09, 13:09:38 UTC

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Third Chinese Airline Opens Flights to Burma

irrawaddy.org

China Southern Airlines opened new direct flights between Rangoon and Guangzhou o­n Monday aimed to promote travel and economic exchanges between the two countries.

The airline has scheduled flights o­n Monday, Wednesday and Saturday, departing from Guangzhou, China, a CSA staff member in the Bangkok sales office told The Irrawaddy o­n Monday.

China Southern Airlines is the third Chinese airline to offer flights to Burma. The other two airlines are China Air, departing from Taiwan to Rangoon, and Air China, departing from Kunming, the capital of China’s Yunnan province, to Mandalay in central Burma. The two airlines offer four flights a week o­n Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday.

The Weekly Journal, a Rangoon-based Burmese language journal, reported o­n June 27 that the CSA flight will depart Rangoon at 8:50 a.m. for Guangzhou.

The airline will also carry cargo, including such items as exotic fish and shrimp, the journal said. Transporting cargo by land takes around 46 hours to travel from Rangoon to Shweli a China-Burma border town.

The Xinhua news agency reported o­n Monday that there are more than 10 airlines, including Myanmar Airways International and nine foreign airlines, offering flights to Rangoon. More than 80 flights per week fly between Rangoon and eight international destinations, including Bangkok; Chiang Mai, Thailand; Singapore; and Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia.

Burma has three domestic airlines: the state-run Myanmar Airways, and two state-private joint ventures, Air Mandalay and Yangon Airways. A privately run airline, Air Bagan, recently added its first international flight from Rangoon to Bangkok in mid-May and it has announced plans to add more international flights to other countries, including China and Singapore.

 Printable Version  | published Jul 02, 2007