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The article reports on the planned sale of three Airbus A330-200 aircraft by Chinese airline Air China.

Air China's first direct flight from Beijing to Warsaw touched down in the Polish capital in September 21. The arrival sees the Chinese carrier become the first East Asian airline [...]

The article features the most successful top executives in China. Li Jiaxiang was instrumental in Air China's recovery from its heavy loss after he took over as chairman in 2004, which he made possible by incorporating military strategies to divest non-core businesses and expand market-share through acquisition and a membership to Star Alliance. CIMC head Li Jianhong and Zhang Xin of TBEA are other top Chinese executives listed in INSEAD's list.

The article explores indications that the aircraft sector is moving out of recession and the time has come to purchase new aircraft. ILFC is into possible order discussions with aircraft makers. The last aircraft order of ILFC was in October 2007. Air China has also ordered 20 B737-800 aircraft. The author claims aircraft pricing is to the advantage of the customer instead of the producer. The author also says that lease rates are starting to escalate.

The article presents information on foreign trade and payments in North Korea. It is reported that plans for expanded official inter-Korean co-operation, agreed by South Korea's then president, Roh Moo-hyun, at his summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-il in October 2007, are now on hold. However, Russia and North Korea have at last agreed in February 2008 on plans to modernise the railway that connects them. Also, a thrice-weekly flights have been launched by Air China between Beijing and Pyongyang.

The article offers news briefs regarding global satellite industry. It states that SatComS along with Satrec Initiative Company, SPOT Asia and Antrix Corporation would launch and distribute imagery from its TeLEOS 1 satellite. GX Aviation would provide aircraft with high speed bandwidth, giving Air China passengers wireless connectivity while in flight. Kratos Integral Systems International, has been selected by SKY Perfect JSAT to upgrade its Epoch IPS satellite fleet management system.

The article reports that the cancellation of five B747-8I orders by DAE Capital resulted in the decline of the order book for the aircraft. The order book was reported to be only 40 units compared with 65 orders for the freighter version of which 32 have been delivered. The said aircraft has only five customers comprised of Air China, Arik Air, BBJ, Korean Air and Lufthansa. As such, Boeing plans to reduce production of the aircraft to 1.75 units per month.

The article discusses the uncertainty in the market for B747-81. It notes that there are only 41 orders for the aircraft made up of 5 from Air China, 2 from Arik Air and 9 from BBJ. It indicates a C-Aircraft Rating for the B747-8I with the limited number of orders resulting in lack of luster values for the type which is barely more than that attributed to its predecessor, the B747-400 in the 1990s. It points to the delivery rate of the A380 that continues to frustrate its customers.

The article reports that Air China is set to dispose of 49 older aircraft from its fleet. These include 25 B737-300s, ten B757s, five B767-300s and nine B747-400s, which represent nearly 20 percent of the Chinese operator's fleet of 270 airplanes. Meanwhile, a report has shown that there was an impairment of 172 million U.S. dollars to the fair market value of these older aircraft, equating to an average difference of more than 3.5 million dollars for each airplane.

The article focuses on various developments related to the aviation industry. Air China Ltd. has signed a maintenance contract with Collins Aviation Maintenance Services Shanghai Limited (CAMSS) to provide service to Air China. The aeronautical Radio Inc. in collaboration with Aeronautical Radio of Thailand Ltd. has announced a new air and ground voice radio service for any airplane operating in South East Asia. Satcom system will work for Carolinas Medical Center (CMC) to track CMC's aircrafts.

The article offers news briefs related to safety measures adopted by the airline industry. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration' First Regional Airline Safety Forum was held on July 21, 2009. The Nigerian airline Chanchangi Airlines recently joined the growing community of Lido FMS customers. The airline will operate its flights with the comprehensive FMS data from Lufthansa Systems. Air China Ltd. has successfully completed its Performance-based Navigation validation flight.

The article reports on the plan of Chinese authorities to consider expanding the scope for institutions to invest in the stock market. The Shanghai Composite Index declined 5.7 percent to a seven-week low of 1,570.15. Institutional investors have their stock investments limited to certain proportions of their total funds. Air China's move to set the price range for its initial public offering at a 3 percent to 10 percent discount to its Hong Kong listed shares will ensure a solid listing for the company.

Focuses on the economic conditions of Hong Kong, China in December 2004 with regards to the initial public offering (IPO) of several companies. Value of the IPO of telecommunication equipment manufacturer ZTE; Expected rise in the earnings of carrier company Air China; Impact of tourist arrivals on the retail sales of the country.