Making their pitches
As the largest carrier on the Sino-US route, United wants to lead the market
again by being the first carrier to connect the capitals of the two most
important nations in the world.
"Washington D.C. is the largest metropolitan area in the United States
without non-stop air service to China," writes J. Dennis Hastert, speaker of the
US House of Representatives, in a letter to the US Department of Transportation
in support of United's new route application. "Capital-to-capital service will
support the continuous dialogue that is critically needed between these two
governments as China continues to grow in the global economy."
"More opportunity for interaction between US and Chinese policymakers is
needed as we work through the economic and political challenges that face our
countries," Hastert says.
As one of United's five hubs in the United States, Washington D.C. will also
serve as an important gateway for visitors to China for the 2008 Summer Olympic
Games, says Mark Schwab, United's vice-president for the Pacific.
United originally planned to apply for non-stop daily service between San
Francisco and Guangzhou, which could make it the first US carrier flying to
South China.
"But we think our current service to Hong Kong can still temporarily meet the
passengers' demand," says Cynthia Qiu, United's marketing specialist in China.
"The consumer need for the capital-to-capital service is even more urgent at
this moment."
United has served China for 20 years and now flies daily non-stop between
Beijing/Shanghai and San Francisco/Chicago. About 25 per cent of its capacity is
serving the Asia-Pacific region.
Northwest, which has also served China for two decades, regards the daily
non-stop service between Detroit and Shanghai the company's "top international
route priority." It vows to offer "competitive" service over existing service
from Chicago by providing access to the eastern US market.
Northwest now flies daily, via its Tokyo hub, between Beijing/Shanghai and
major US cities.
Continental, for its part, says its biggest advantage is that Continental is
the largest air service provider to the New York area. Shanghai, as the business
centre of China, needs convenient connections to New York.
As major US carriers suffer from low-fare competition at home and soaring
fuel costs, they believe exploring more profitable international routes in Asia,
especially China, could make a turnaround possible.
"Do I see further competition in the China market in the future? I do,"
Panagiotoulias says.
"It does create a lot of pressure, but providing more choices to consumers is
a good thing, both for the consumers and for the airline industry," he says.
"Any airline that does not adapt to that is not going to be
successful."
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