Airlines battle passenger fury over delays

Passengers wait for announcements of their flights in Beijing on Aug 11,2013. Hundreds of flights were canceled or delayed due to storms. [Cai Daizheng / for China Daily]

Civil aviation authorities vow to improve timekeeping

Flight schedules may sometimes appear as if they are up in the air, but Chinese airlines say they are striving to improve amid passenger anger over poor punctuality.

Air China, the country's leading carrier, said in a statement to China Daily that it has drafted response plans for bad weather and other circumstances that can cause delays.

It said it is cooperating closely with meteorological departments and airports to ensure extreme weather conditions and other possible occurrences do not seriously affect flight schedules.

The company also pledged to improve internal coordination and passenger service in the event of delays or schedule changes.

Air China said that if a flight is postponed, it sends text messages to passengers and notifies ticket agencies to inform customers.

A display screen will be placed at each of the company's counters to show weather satellite images from meteorological departments, according to the statement.