China Wants 500,000 Pilots, Flight Attendants; Alitrip Arrives

Pilots around the world must have been delighted to see headlines that indicated China needs 500,000 pilots by 2035. However, that wasn't referring to a cushy job making RMB 200,000 per month, as was recently advertised. What China's looking for is private pilots who can start building a general aviation industry. As more people fly, it's not possible that commercial aviation can handle all of the demand for air transport, and so people learning to fly themselves, and purchase and operate their own planes to do so, will help address that. Restrictions remain that prevent private pilots from routing as they wish, and since China's air force rules (and effectively owns) the skies, we'll see how this develops.

The Henan provincial capital of Zhengzhou just held the Fourth Angel International Air Hostess Contest. We have no idea who won.

Also, China Internet giant Alibaba is planning to get in on the online travel game, which is now worth an estimated USD 10 billion. Not surprisingly named Alitrip, the company was spun off and will handle both domestic and international bookings. Considering that Ctrip and Elong, the market's other two biggest players, suck in terms of both price and service, a new player is a very welcome development.

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Photo: China Daily