CAAC announces operational highlights in 2011

CAAC reported (27-Dec-2011) the following operational highlights for the nation's aviation industry in 2011:

• Number of carriers: 46 (including 11 freighter carriers), three more than 2010;
• Number of airports: 180, five more than 2010;
• Number of aircraft: 1745 aircraft, 148 more than 2010;
• General aviation flight hours: 455,000 hours, +16.3% year-on-year;
• Fixed asset investments: CNY69.0 billion (USD10.8 billion) including CNY46.0 billion (USD7.2 billion) in airport construction and CNY1800 million (USD281 million) in air traffic control construction;
• Number of pilots: 27,569 including 25,853 Chinese nationals and 3293 foreign pilots;
• Number of aviation employees: 1.2 million;
• Bilateral agreements: Signed one new bilateral air transport agreement in 2011, bringing China's number of bilateral agreements to 114 nations and regions.