Urumqi Air Transforms to International Low Cost Carrier
By Rejoice Xu, China Aviation Daily | Jun. 28, 2017
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Urumqi Air announced its transition to differentiated service in the press conference on June 21, 2017. Following the low-cost airline trend in the market, Urumqi Air intends to carry on differentiated service to reduce operating cost in order to lower ticket price and benefit customers since July 16 this year.
Price Decreases by 5%-12% and Let Customers Choose
Differentiated service bases on the theory that passengers do not need to pay for the service they do not need. That is to say, the regional carrier will cancel free meal in the air while giving passengers chances to have the service they are willing to pay.
Passengers can book the meal online which will be better than that offered by full service carriers, according to Cai Ruimu, General Manager of Marketing Department of Urumqi Air. Meanwhile, the company will roll out ticket without package, which will be 5% to 12% less than that in the present market and based on the average price of flights departing from Xin Jiang, it will be 180-360 yuan and for long-haul routes like Sanya-Urumqi, it will be nearly 400 yuan cheaper than before.
In a bit to attract and help more people to experience and know differentiated service, the company will have the online sale of 1 yuan for 20kg luggage from June 16 to July 15. As for passengers booking before and on June 9, they can enjoy the cabin food service for free and the favorable price for meal booking online will be 25 yuan only.
Grab Marketing Opportunity to Embrace Low-Cost Trend
There have been more than 170 low-cost airlines all around the world by now, accounting for over 26% share of the industry. In Europe, short-distance routes within 2-4 hours have all been operated by low-cost carriers.
The low-cost airlines have controlled 30% of Asian market, while in China, there is only 7% low-cost operation, meaning this kind of operating model is still at an initial stage in China. Li Haibin from Xin Jiang Civil Aviation Administration indicated that the transition to differentiated service of Urumqi Air is a reasonable planning for the current market. For one thing, it fulfills passengers' various traveling needs, increasing traffic flow. For the other, it drives the inner structure adjustment of the civil aviation in Xin Jiang, facilitating the changes of consumption concept.
Cen Jianjun, Chairman of Urumqi Air said the reason for this decision is that low-cost operation has won the support of the country and spread rapidly with great space. Travelers prefer necessary service with lower prices. The fast growth of urbanization with higher air travelling need and the challenges from the increasingly comprehensive railway road have pushed forward the development of differentiated service and low-cost airlines.
Take Advantage of One Belt One Road to Promote the Development of Internationalized Strategy
Lied in West China, Xin Jiang borders on
eight counties with a frontier line accounting for a quarter of the country's
whole land borderline. It has an allover opening geographic advantage with 15
national ports and 12 provincial ports. Thus, it possesses great
marketing potential in Mid-West Asia and even East Europe.
Chairman Cen said that as the only one local airline, Urumqi Air will make full use of its core area strategy advantage of One Belt One Road and build the most energetic low-cost airline in Mid-West Asia by constantly enlarging aircraft fleet and opening air routes connecting countries within One Belt One Road.
Urumqi Air was approved by Civil Aviation
Administration of China (CAAC) in October 2013 and opened the first route on
August 29 the next year. With four-year operation, it has 18 destination cities
flying with 9 Boeing 737-800s. Its fleet will reach 18 and destinations will
increase to 30 at the end of this year. By the end of the 13th Five Year Plan,
it will have 50 aircraft. The company has been the backbone force of the civil
aviation industry in Xin Jiang.