In April 2001 and under the regulations of the
CAAC, 56 national and local airlines were
categorized into three groups; Air China, Eastern
Airline and Western Airlines. Air China operated
in developed areas such as America, Japan,
Western Europe and Austria, and the other two
groups aggressively expanded into international
markets while mainly focused on domestic
business.
While the factors like price and schedule
arrangement are well below the average level and
the choices based on brand image and service
largely exceed the other two, Air China positions
itself with quality service while the other two
groups compete with lower prices and schedule
arrangements. Recently, all three groups have
experienced deteriorating performances due to
other global factors, and under these pressures,
revenue maximizing and cost efficiency are
becoming the first considerations when
stipulating business strategies.