The profitability of private air companies indicates that reform of the aviation industry is a pressing issue, says a signed article in Dazhong Daily. An excerpt follows:

Compared with the hundreds of airplanes and routes of the major large airlines, the few planes and routes of private air companies seem very poor. But recently, one private air company after another has announced that they are turning a profit.

Spring Airlines first announced that they made 10 million yuan (US$1.23 million) in profits. Then East Star Airlines and Okay Airways announced their earnings. East Star Airlines only made its first flight in May.

Cost control for the aviation industry is much harder than in other trades. Some insiders think there is no living space for cheap flights in China. Also, since the private air companies started their business last year, the price of aviation fuel has risen more than 50 per cent. In the first half of the year, China's aviation industry recorded a loss of 2.57 billion yuan (US$317 million).

Against such a background, the private air companies' profitability is especially precious, though the sums of the profits are not that big in the eyes of some large State-owned airlines.

It is possible that these small private companies announced their profits mostly because they want to expand their brand influences and win trust from investors. And the profits may be over-estimated, as the data did not come from examined reports. But even if the profits were very little, it is an inspiring thing.

Air companies in the United States, also facing the pressure of high fuel prices, have made US$1.5 billion in profits over the first six months of the year. All this has made it clear that airlines in the red should not always cite fuel prices as an excuse.

Fuel prices are the same for all air companies. State-owned airlines, though emphasizing cost control all the time, are still extensive in their cost management. Private companies' profits show that there is still much room to lower costs for China's aviation sector.