Loading

China Airlines to resume Taipei-London, becomes the last major Asian flag airline to fly to London

Analysis

China Airlines plans to resume Taipei-London service with the A350 by the end of 2016. The swift interest and compressed timescale may reflect the airline's new government-appointed chairman wanting to refocus the airline. The number of Taiwanese visitors to the UK has grown since China Airlines exited London in 2012, but volume is still small and one-stop competition has grown in what is mostly a leisure and price-sensitive market. China Airlines is stressing the opportunity to connect London with its growing Australian markets, but its three online Australian cities are served less than daily. Australia-London/Europe competition has also grown, so China Airlines - despite an improved product to London - will likely pick up fringe traffic. There are stronger opportunities for the relatively sleepy airline in the dynamic and booming Northeast Asia.

China Airlines will become the last major Asian flag airline at London Heathrow following the previous entry of Garuda, Philippine Airlines and Vietnam Airlines. Only Mongolia's MIAT is absent. 12 Asian airlines fly long haul but do not serve London. Besides MIAT and Hong Kong Airlines, the only Asian airlines not in London are Mainland Chinese airlines or long haul LCCs.

Read More

This CAPA Analysis Report is 2,458 words.

You must log in to read the rest of this article.

Got an account? Log In

Create a CAPA Account

Get a taste of our expert analysis and research publications by signing up to CAPA Content Lite for free, or unlock full access with CAPA Membership.

InclusionsContent Lite UserCAPA Member
News
Non-Premium Analysis
Premium Analysis
Data Centre
Selected Research Publications

Want More Analysis Like This?

CAPA Membership provides access to all news and analysis on the site, along with access to many areas of our comprehensive databases and toolsets.
Find Out More