Air China Limited registered 10.5% growth in passenger throughput in December 2016, with passenger capacity increasing 6.4% year on year, according to the airline's monthly statistics.

In December, the flag carrier handled about 7.9 million people and 169,352 tonnes of cargo and mail, up 10.4% and 11.1 year on year, respectively.

Passenger capacity measured by ASK (Available Seat Kilometers) increased 6.4% from a year earlier. Domestic ASK and passenger traffic increased 9.3% and 11.3%, respectively, as compared to the same period last year. For international routes, passenger capacity and passenger traffic increased 3.4% and 4.2%, respectively. The airline deployed 7.9% less capacity on Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan routes in December 2016.

Meanwhile, RPK (Revenue Passenger Kilometers) rose 10.5% year on year in December. Domestic RPK increased 12%, with international RPK climbing 9.4% and that on Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan routes declining 2.2%.

The overall passenger load factor rose 3 percentage points from a year earlier to 79.5%.

In cargo traffic, both cargo and mail traffic, measured by Revenue Freight Tonne Kilometers (RFTK), was up 11.4% and cargo capacity, measured by Available Freight Tonne Kilometers (AFTK), grew by 6.2% year on year.

Volume of cargo and traffic rose by 11.1% from a year earlier; while freight load factor rose 2.7 percentage points to 59%.

In December 2016, Air China introduced four aircraft in total, including one Boeing 777-300ER, one B737-800, one Airbus A330 and one A321, and retired one business jet. As at the end of December 2016, the airline Group operated a fleet of 625 aircraft.

In the full year, the flag carrier transported a total of 96.6 million passengers, up 7.5% over 2015.