Tianjin Airlines
- See Grand China Air for the holding company of Hainan Airlines.
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| Founded | 2004 (as Grand China Express Air) | |||
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| Commenced operations | 2007 | |||
| Hubs | Tianjin Binhai International Airport and Haikou Meilan International Airport | |||
| Secondary hubs | ||||
| Focus cities | ||||
| Frequent-flyer program | Fortune Wings Club | |||
| Fleet size | 90 | |||
| Destinations | 63 | |||
| Parent company | Grand China Air Company Ltd | |||
| Headquarters | Tianjin, China | |||
| Website | tianjin-air.com/ | |||
Tianjin Airlines (Chinese: 天津航空; pinyin: Tiānjīn Hángkōng —formerly Grand China Express Air) is a regional airline headquartered in Tianjin Binhai International Airport passenger terminal building, Dongli District, Tianjin, People's Republic of China,[1] operating domestic scheduled passenger and cargo flights out of Tianjin Binhai International Airport.[2]
History
The airline was established in 2004 in an effort to merge the major aviation assets of Hainan Airlines, China Xinhua Airlines, Chang'an Airlines and Shanxi Airlines, and received its operating licence from the Civil Aviation Administration of China in 2007.[3] Scheduled flights were launched under the brand name Grand China Express Air, using 29-32 seat Dornier 328-300 jets. At that time, the company was China's largest regional airline, operating on 78 routes linking 54 cities. On 10 June 2009, the company name was changed to Tianjin Airlines.[4] As of August 2011, 63 destinations are served (excluding those operated on behalf of Hainan Airlines),[5] though by 2012, the airline intends to fly on more than 450 routes linking at least 90 cities, taking more than 90% of the domestic regional aviation market.[6]
Destinations
Tianjin Airlines is a major player in the regional airline markets of Xinjiang and Inner Mongolia, known for shuttling passengers between the regional capitals to various feeder airports.
Fleet
As of February 2015, the Tianjin Airlines fleet consists of the following aircraft with an average age of 4.1 years:[7]
| Aircraft | In Service | Passengers[8] | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | Y | Total | |||
| Airbus A320 | 17 | 8 | 144 | 152 | 1 leased from parent Hainan Airlines |
| Embraer ERJ 145 | 23 | 0 | 50 | 50 | 1 aircraft stored |
| Embraer 190 | 50 | 6 0 |
92 106 |
98 106 |
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| Total | 90 | ||||
Additionally, Tianjin Airlines operates 11 Dornier 328 aircraft which are owned by Hainan Airlines.[9]
Incidents and accidents
- On June 29, 2012 there was an attempted hijacking of Tianjin Airlines Flight 7554, an Embraer ERJ-190, by six ethnic Uyghur men. Passengers and crew overpowered the hijackers. The plane returned to Hotan at 12:45 pm, where 11 passengers and crew and two hijackers were treated for injuries. Two hijackers died from injuries from the fight on the plane. The incident marked the first serious hijacking attempt in China since 1990.[10]
References
- ↑ http://www.tianjin-air.com/en/frontend/information/newInfo/contractus.jsp http://www.tianjin-air.com/frontend/information/newInfo/contractus.jsp
- ↑ "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International. 2007-04-03. p. 87.
- ↑ Travel Daily News 17 April 2007
- ↑ 9 June 2009
- ↑ Tianjin Airlines homepage (book flights)
- ↑ CNN 16 May 2007
- ↑ Tianjin Airlines fleet list at planespotters.net
- ↑ Tianjin Airlines Seat Arrangements 16 May 2007
- ↑ Tianjin Airlines fleet list at ch-aviation.ch
- ↑ Tianjin Airlines Flight 7554 Information
External links
- Official website (Chinese)
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Tianjin Airlines. |
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