Qantas joins forces with China Southern
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Qantas has signed a major new tie-up with China Southern Airlines, aimed at boosting travel between Australia and China.
The codeshare agreement will see the two airlines join forces on a series of routes between their home countries, as well as offering passengers connections to a greater range of domestic destinations.
Qantas will place its ‘QF’ code on China Southern’s flights from Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth to Guangzhou, and the onwards from the southern Chinese city to Xiamen, Kunming, Fuzhou and Urumqi.
In return, China Southern will add its ‘CZ’ code to Qantas’ flights from Sydney to Brisbane, Melbourne, Cairns, Canberra, the Gold Coast and Adelaide, from Melbourne to Adelaide and Brisbane and from Brisbane to Cairns. In addition, the codeshare will include Qantas’ trans-Tasman service between Sydney and Auckland.
“The signing of this agreement… blazes a new and exciting trail for our two companies,” said China Southern’s chairman, Si Xianmin. “We welcome this move because it will give our passengers greater access to Australia and will also open up Australian tourism to a leisure and business market that is growing by nearly 20% a year.”
Qantas’s group CEO, Alan Joyce, said he was “very pleased to have China Southern as a partner in the world’s fastest growing aviation market”.
“This is great news for the increasing number of Qantas customers travelling to China for business and leisure because it simplifies their journey and opens new destinations,” Joyce added.
In addition to the codeshare arrangement, the airlines have agreed to investigate other areas of potential cooperation, including pilot training and cargo partnerships.
The new codeshare services will be available for booking and travel from early 2014.
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