Civil freight transport down by 28 percent in February

The head of the Civil Aviation Administration of China, Li Jiachang, said on March 4th that as a result of the global economic downturn, the volume of freight transported domestically was down by 28 percent and the number of passengers on international flights shrank by 16 percent, but domestic flights saw an increase of 13.4 percent more passengers in February. However, Li predicts that passenger growth will exceed the 8 percent target.
Li encouraged airline executives to run a tight ship and emphasized that the CAAC will put state-owned airlines and privately-run airlines on equal footing. Regarding aircraft import, Li said his agency is working closely with manufacturers.