As the coronavirus continues to spread, thousands are abandoning travel plans to China. United Airlines is responding by suspending flights to two Mainland airports and Hong Kong for the next two months. This is an update to an earlier post....
White House May Suspend All U.S. Flights To China
The difficult commercial decision on whether to suspend flights to China may be taken out of the hands of U.S. airlines altogether after the White House hinted that all U.S. flights to China may be halted. Earlier media reports...
How A Cockpit Photo Outraged China
A pilot lets his girlfriend sit in the cockpit. She posts it on social media. A blogger notices and complains on Weibo. Outrage grows. Many are punished. The pilot is banned for life. But was the reaction a bit...
Review: Brand New Park Hyatt Shenzhen – Suite
The brand new Park Hyatt Shenzhen perfects luxury high above southeastern China’s Silicon Valley. When given the opportunity to review the property, I couldn’t pass it up. If you are considering booking travel or signing up for a new credit card please click...
Three Major Chinese Airlines Synchronously Invest In Chinese-Made Jet Fleet
Major Chinese airlines are looking away from Airbus and Boeing and investing in Chinese-made aircraft in a peculiarly imitative order. Air China, China Eastern, and China Southern each announced identical orders for 35 Comac ARJ21-700 twinjets. The Comac ARJ21 is intended...
As China Grounds 737 MAX, Safety Questions Abound
Tragically, an Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 MAX traveling from Addis Ababa to Nairobi crashed shortly after takeoff yesterday. 159 perished and there were no survivors. The second crash of this aircraft variant in a matter of months has left...
The Real Reason Air New Zealand 787 Was Denied Landing in Shanghai: Taiwan
There’s a new twist in the Air New Zealand 787 diversion story…it appears China denied the aircraft landing rights over a reference to Taiwan on the flight paperwork. In case you missed my story yesterday, an Air New Zealand...
Overwhelmed at the Shenzhen Electronics Malls
During my status run to Hong Kong, I took a day trip to Shenzhen, a place I have never been before. Once I found my way into the city, I was on a mission to visit some of the...
Getting From Hong Kong to Shenzhen
During my status run to Hong Kong, I took a day trip to Shenzhen, a place I have never been before. Some of the information I found online was incomplete or incorrect so I wanted to share my efficient,...
Why China Is Angry At United Airlines
A good compromise leaves both sides mildly discontent, but when one side has a stronger 剑 (sword), compromises do not hold up long. Mainland China is angry at United Airlines. It views the carrier’s “compromise” on the sticky Taiwan issue...
The Gold Mine Of China Turns Into Fool’s Gold For U.S. Airlines
U.S. airlines are retreating from Mainland China, realizing the great Chinese aviation gold mine may actually be fool’s gold. To be sure, there is money to be made…a lot of it. But U.S. airlines are increasingly finding frustrating yields...
Now Taiwan May Punish Airlines Who Complied With Chinese Demands
In the ongoing battle over the sovereignty of China and Taiwan, Taiwan is now fighting back. The island nation is mulling punitive “countermeasures” for airlines who caved into Mainland demands to label Taiwan as part of China. These “countermeasures” are...
Review: EasyGo VIP International Lounge – Hangzhou (HGH)
The EasyGo VIP International Lounge in Hangzhou (HGH) served one key purpose: I was able to charge my devices prior to my AirAsia flight. You might have trouble finding this Priority Pass lounge unless you can read Chinese. Look...
Editorial: Satisfying China’s Request is Impractical
China has asked US airlines to designate Taiwan as part of China on their websites and systems. Regardless of where you fall on the China/Taiwan debate, there are impracticalities that arise when treating the two places as one country and it...
China Rejects Compromise On Taiwan By U.S. Airlines
China has rejected an attempt at compromise over the thorny Taiwan issue by the three U.S. legacy carriers. Earlier this week, I wrote that U.S. airlines agreed to Chinese demands that Taiwan not be listed as an independent nation...
U.S. Airlines Will Kowtow To China On Taiwan
U.S. airlines including American, Delta, and United are poised to capitulate to Chinese demands to remove references to Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau as separate nations. Last time I wrote about this, U.S. airlines had collectively deferred to the...
Air China Fires Smoking Pilots, But Will Culture Change?
Last week, I wrote about an Air China 737-800 that rapidly descended due to a loss of cabin pressure. At the time, Air China and Chinese authorities believed it was due to pilots smoking in the flight deck, but...
Chinese Warn Citizens That U.S. Travel Is Extremely Dangerous
China and the USA are now at war with another…a trade war. The old adage “all is fair in love and war” applies here too. The Chinese government has warned its citizens about the unsafe conditions in the United...
China Won’t Discuss Taiwan Issue With U.S. Airlines, Blames Trump
As a “final” deadline approaches for U.S. airlines to respect Chinese wishes over the classification of Taiwan on their websites, the issue is escalating into a full-blown diplomatic battle. Recall that China has insisted that all U.S. airlines identity...
U.S. Airlines Brashly Defy China: Consequences Coming?
The Chinese government is insisting that U.S. airlines stop treating Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau as separate nations on their websites and other booking channels. Thus far, U.S. airlines have steadfastly refused. But what will happen when Beijing tightens...
