Aviation industry surges higher

No airline can afford to miss the China ride.

China's fast-growing economy is making the country a shining star in the global aviation market. Since the country adopted the reforms and opening up policies in 1978, its air traffic has been increasing at double-digit rate each year to keep pace with the explosive growth in passenger and cargo throughput.

China's air traffic has maintained an average annual growth rate of 18 percent since 1980, almost double the country's GDP growth rate and three times the world's average air traffic growth rate during the same period, according to figures from the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC), the industry watchdog.