Air China flies Chengdu-Lhasa route for 45 years

3/2/2010

Photo shows an Air China A319 parking at the Mainling Airport in southeast Tibet's Nyingchi Prefecture after a successful required navigation performance (RNP) test flight on Sept. 2, 2009. (Photo: cns)

Air China has been operating the air route between Chengu, capital of Sichuan Province, and Lhasa, capital of Tibet Autonomous Region, for 45 years by Monday.

In the past 45 years, the airline, China's second-largest commercial airline after China Southern Airlines, has flown 67,000 sorties on the air route, carrying 8.74 million passengers and 198,000 tons of cargo.

According to a leading official of Air China, located at an average altitude of 4,000 m, the Tibet Plateau features glaciers and sees more occurrences of wind and sand storms, hailstones, thunders and turbulent currents. The airspace was once considered the "forbidden zone for flight" by the international airline community and the most difficult flight airspace.

To meet the special needs for flight on the plateau, the Southwest Branch of Air China conducted adaptability modification to the oxygen supply system for passenger cabins, the pressure charging system of cabins and the power system of engines of all the planes flying the route.

Now a total of 32 planes from Air China are flying the air route, more than any other airlines.

Air China also launched the night flight between Chengdu and Lhasa on Nov. 12, 2008, the first night flight at the Lhasa Gonggar Airport.

According to a leading official of Air China, located at an average altitude of 4,000 m, the Tibet Plateau features glaciers and sees more occurrences of wind and sand storms, hailstones, thunders and turbulent currents. The airspace was once considered the "forbidden zone for flight" by the international airline community and the most difficult flight airspace.

To meet the special needs for flight on the plateau, the Southwest Branch of Air China conducted adaptability modification to the oxygen supply system for passenger cabins, the pressure charging system of cabins and the power system of engines of all the planes flying the route.

Now a total of 32 planes from Air China are flying the air route, more than any other airlines.

Air China also launched the night flight between Chengdu and Lhasa on Nov. 12, 2008, the first night flight at the Lhasa Gonggar Airport.

Source: Xinhuanet