China Southwest Airlines (Chinese: 中国西南航空公司; pinyin: Zhōngguó Xīnán Hángkōng Gōngsī) is a major Chinese airline headquartered on the grounds of Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport (CTU), in Shuangliu, Chengdu, Sichuan, China. The airline operates from two hub airports, both located at Chengdu: Chengdu-CTU (Shuangliu Airport), which offers only domestic flights, and Chengdu Tianfu International Airport (TFU), or Chengdu-TFU, which offers both domestic and international flights.
Once the 2nd largest airline in China, China Southwest Airlines was split into two carriers in 2002, part of which was spun off to form a 2nd airline, Jade Air. China Southwest still has a large route network connecting Chengdu to about 100 cities across China, as well as flights to over 20 international destinations across Asia.
History
Wan Zhaohui and the Early Years
China Southwest Airlines was founded in 1988, when China’s historic national flag carrier, the People's Aviation Company of China (PACC; 中國人民航空公司; Zhōngguó Rénmín Hángkōng Gōngsī), founded in 1952, was split into 7 smaller regional airlines known collectively at the time as the Seven Sisters (七姊妹, Qī zǐmèi). Wan Zhaohui, a former executive at PACC and a native of Chengdu, was appointed by the Chinese central government to take over the Chengdu-CTU based portion, to be named China Southwest Airlines.
China Southwest’s share of the old PACC fleet consisted primarily of several Russian-made Tupolev Tu-154 and Ilyushin Il-62 aircraft, along with a few Boeing 737-300s, a pair of Boeing 707-120s and a single Boeing 707-320B. The Tu-154s and Il-62s were rather old, but there were a few younger Tu-154M and Il-62M variants that were more usable.
Mr Wan made do with his allotment of aircraft and quickly set about placing most of them on domestic routes, while the 707-320B and Il-62Ms were assigned to international routes connecting to Moscow-VKO, Singapore-SIN, Seoul-ICN, and Tokyo-NRT. China Southwest also initiated nonstop service to Vladivostok-VVO using one of the Tu-154Ms. Mr Wan also leased newer Boeing 757-200 to fly on longer and/or busier routes beginning in 1990. That same year, the last of the Ilyushin Il-62s were sold off and more Boeing 737-300s made their way into the fleet. The old Boeing 707-320 was sent away in 1991, and the two Boeing 707-120s were withdrawn from service in 1994.
The 1990s were a period of considerable growth and expansion for the company. China Southwest introduced the more modern Tupolev Tu-214 twinjet from 1993, flying it mostly on busier domestic routes. The company also began to bring on the new Airbus A320-200 to serve as its workhorse aircraft of the future.
By the mid 1990s China Southwest began making use of widebody Boeing 767s to greatly enhance the company’s reach internationally. The carrier soon started flying intercontinentally to Australia, New Zealand, North America and Europe, as well as to several cities across Asia and the Middle East.
In 1998 the company began to replace its 737-300s with new generation Boeing 737-600s, and the remaining Tupolev Tu-154s were subsequently put out to pasture. In 1999 the airline added Boeing 737-800s and the Airbus A319 to its fleet, while the last of the company’s 737-300s were retired in early 2002.
Wan Zhaohui’s Forced Retirement Controversy
When Wan Zhaohui took over China Southwest Airlines in the late 1980s, most observers thought China Southwest would be the “runt” of the 7 carrier litter produced by the breakup of the old PAAC airline. By early 2002, China Southwest had developed the largest domestic route network in China outside Beijing, and its international network rivaled that of the nation’s new flag carrier, Zhongguo Airlines, the largest of the Seven Sisters.
By 2002, Wan Zhaohui was still a very energetic and spry man of 75 years. Having run China Southwest Airlines for 14 years at that point, he had easily exceeded all expectations, as noted previously. Soon enough, however, Mr Wan’s overachieving ways and advanced age combined to make him a victim of his own success.
It was no secret that some power brokers in Beijing believed that China Southwest Airlines had become too powerful within the nation’s airline industry, especially since it was not based in either Beijing or Shanghai, the nation’s two major economic and political power centers. But on a more practical level, the airline had also become very dominant in the Chengdu market, and other carriers were finding it increasingly difficult to remain competitive there.
So it was that in the summer of 2002, the central government suddenly stepped in and abruptly relieved Mr Wan of his duties at China Southwest. At the behest of top officials, he was not actually purged, but merely sent into a sort of involuntary retirement due to his advanced age.
Despite being in great health and in full command of his mental faculties, Mr Wan chose to quietly leave the company and retire. He relocated to Sanya, a resort city on the island of Hainan in southernmost China, where he basically played golf and indulged his passion for calligraphy and photography until he passed away in 2023 at the age of 96.
Zhou Fu and the China Southwest-Jade Air Split
As Wan Zhaohui was exiting stage left, Zhou Fu took over as the new CEO of China Southwest Airlines in the summer of 2002.
Born in Nanchong, Sichuan and educated in Shanghai, Mr Zhou was 55 at the time and had spent 30-plus years working for Beijing-based Zhongguo Airlines. As that company’s Executive Vice President, he was expected to become either the next CEO of Zhongguo Airlines, or perhaps be promoted to a ranking position at the CAAC, China’s civil aviation authority. An internecine rivalry with Zhongguo Airlines’ well connected CEO at the time resulted in Mr Zhou being shunted off to take over China Southwest Airlines instead, which he was not enthused about at first.
Shortly after arriving in Chengdu, Mr Zhou began by executing a sort of soft coup, removing a few executives deemed to have become problematic or resentful following Mr Wan’s recent departure. He replaced them with a set of senior managers he considered competent yet loyal, or at least more trustworthy. Mr Zhou also introduced a new airline logo design that replaced its original “wing” design with an illustration of the Golden Sun Bird artifact, an ancient ring-shaped piece of foil made of nearly pure gold rediscovered in 2001.
Next, Mr Zhou spun off the majority of China Southwest’s international routes and its entire fleet of Boeing 767 widebody aircraft to form a 2nd airline, Jade Air, to be based at Shanghai’s newly opened Pudong-PVG airport. Mr Zhou retained firm control over both airlines until 2005, and had intended to leave China Southwest Airlines to become CEO of the newly separated, independently run Jade Air. However, Mr Zhou had won the loyalty of most of the company’s staff still based in Chengdu, and he found himself to be happier living there. So instead Mr Zhou chose to stay with China Southwest and gave control of Jade Air to a longtime friend and former Zhongguo colleague, Hao Zhixin.
After The Split
In the years after the Jade Air spinoff, Zhou Fu concentrated mostly on domestic route expansion. He also directed the company’s fleet management teams to begin transitioning the airline towards an all-Airbus fleet. While Mr Zhou did not hide the fact that he personally preferred Airbus aircraft on the merits, he was more concerned with attaining aircraft type commonality and crew cross-type training with the goal of gaining greater operational flexibility while reducing operating and maintenance costs.
In the years after the 2005 split, China Southwest began to gradually restore its international routes lost after the 2005 split with Jade Air. The only international cities retained by the carrier were Singapore-SIN and the SAR cities of Hong Kong-HKG and Macau-MFM. The airline began returning to destinations such as Tokyo-NRT, Seoul-ICN, Kuala Lumpur-KUL and Bangkok-BKK. Other routes to India, Nepal, Myanmar, Vietnam and the Philippines were also re-established over time, but routes to Europe were left out of the mix.
In 2008, the airline had acquired enough Airbus A320-200s to retire the last of its Tu-214s, which were leased in turn to other Chinese airlines for several more years as freighters before finally being scrapped in the mid to late 2010s.
2010s Fleet Changes and Challenges
In 2009, China Southwest was put under a bit of pressure by the central government to purchase at least a few new Russian airliners as a diplomatic favor. Mr Zhou relented and at the 2009 Paris Air Show he ordered seven new Sukhoi SSJ100s. In 2010 China Southwest also ordered over 50 of the new model Airbus A320neo airliners, which were to start deliveries by 2015 but actually began to arrive in 2017.
The first two Sukhoi SSJ100s were delivered to Chengdu-CTU in late 2011, and the airline promptly used them to replace its final two Boeing 737-600s and apply them to various domestic routes. However, a series of technical issues and recurring parts delivery delays made the SSJ100s difficult to rely upon. Mr Zhou dutifully accepted two more deliveries of the type, and this time their performance improved somewhat. But increasingly severe parts delivery delays soon forced the airline to cannibalize its two older aircraft in order to keep its two newer planes flying. By 2015 Mr Zhou had seen enough, and the decision was taken to cancel the remaining three Sukhoi orders, scrap the first two SSJ100s entirely and sell off the two remaining aircraft to a Russian carrier - who accepted the planes for about one-third of their original price. Leased A319s and A320s were brought in to replace the departed SSJ100s.
In 2015 the final Boeing 737-800 was retired, which left China Southwest with three remaining active aircraft types: the Airbus A319 and Airbus A320-200 for its domestic and short international routes, and the Boeing 757-200 for its longer international routes. Orders were placed later the same year for the new longer range Airbus A321LR version of the A321neo, with an eye towards retiring the 757s by 2020.
In 2016, China Southwest Airlines signed an agreement with the Sichuan Provincial Airport Group to open and operate a 2nd hub at a new airport in Chengdu’s Tianfu New Area development zone. That airport, Chengdu-TFU, opened in 2021. In 2017, China Southwest started receiving the first of its A320neo orders, and the process of removing the older generation A319s and A320-200s commenced.
In March 2018 Zhou Fu elected to retire at the age of 71. Jokes were made at the time by many that Mr Zhou knew he was about to be given a forced retirement like his predecessor Wan Zhaohui and he beat them to it. But in reality it was much less dramatic than that: During a Chinese New Year holiday vacation taken in Phuket, Mr Zhou’s family persuaded him to finally consider retirement, and after some reflection he decided to do just that.
When Mr Zhou returned to Chengdu he retired and handed the reins over to his Executive Vice President, Qiao Guangli. Mr Zhou bought a condo in Singapore, but unfortunately died in 2020 due to the early “novel” strain of Covid 19.
Qiao Guangli and Late 2010s
Mr Qiao originally came to China Southwest from Zhongguo Airlines alongside Zhou Fu, at the age of 29. He had started out with Zhongguo as a scheduler, responsible for coordinating schedules at Beijing-PEK for the company’s aircraft and flight crews. When he joined China Southwest he became an operations manager, and Mr Zhou moved him up through the company ranks until Mr Qiao reached the position of Vice President of Operations in 2011 at age 38. He then became Executive Vice President in 2016. Mr Qiao then took over the CEO position from Mr Zhou in 2018 at the age of 45 - a younger age compared to most Chinese CEOs, who usually arrive at that role in their 50s.
Mr Qiao first began by re-establishing the company’s old routes from Chengdu-CTU to Vladivostok-VVO and Ulan Bator-ULN, and starting a new and very profitable nonstop service to Taipei-TPE.
2019 became a busy year for the company’s fleet management, when Mr Qiao began to focus on creating longer international routes. The year began with a visit to Airbus headquarters in France, where Mr Qiao ordered 10 new Airbus A321XLRs. which at the time were expected to arrive starting in 2023.
A few months later, Mr Qiao decided to depart from his predecessor’s inclination to stick with an all-Airbus fleet. He visited the emerging Aria Aircraft Company’s facilities in the United States, where he ordered 30 of their 102-seat medium range Aria T102 Transonic aircraft, and 20 of their higher capacity and longer range Aria T202 Transonic airliners. Plans were made to use the T102s mainly on shorter and/or thinner routes to destinations within China, while the T202’s excellent 5000 nm range and 202 passenger capacity seemed to be perfect for future route expansion plans to more far-flung destinations like Sydney-SYD and Melbourne-MEL, which lay just beyond the A321XLR’s 4700 range. Other T202s were to be used to service cities in Europe and the Middle East, as well as busier routes within Asia proper.
After their US trip, Mr Qiao his operations and maintenance teams visited the Comac factory in Shanghai, where together they closely inspected several of that company’s recently built Comac C919 prototypes. They found the C919’s specifications to be reasonably competitive with the airline’s existing A320s, and once Comac was able to confirm that the C919 would receive very strong MRO (maintenance, repair and overhaul) support, Mr Qiao ordered 10 C919s with options for 20 more. The company plans to use them around its domestic network, and perhaps later to select near-range international destinations.
2020s and Covid 19
When the Covid 19 pandemic struck in early 2020, the central government of China responded with comprehensive lockdowns that shut down most airline operations - indeed, whole swaths of the country - within weeks. For the next three years, at the government’s request China Southwest began repurposing much of its fleet to help expedite delivery of supplies and medicines to cities throughout China. The lockdowns would ease and allow passenger flights to resume, only for a new lockdown to be imposed, forcing the airline to stop scheduled flights again. This pattern continued more or less the same way until late 2022, when the government decided to effectively end its “zero-Covid” policy in favor of less strict measures.
On 27 June 2021 China Southwest Airlines opened its 2nd hub at Chengdu’s brand new Tianfu International Airport (TFU), and transferred all of its international flights there from Chengdu-CTU (Shuangliu International Airport). Since then, Chengdu-CTU has served only domestic routes while Chengdu-TFU has provided both domestic and international air service. Both airports have continued to see expansions in routes and service frequencies, with Chengdu-TFU perhaps becoming the busier of the two airports by early 2024.
During the latter half of 2022, China Southwest took delivery of its first Airbus A321LR, and accordingly retired the last of its now-venerable Boeing 757-200s. The company also took delivery of its first Comac C919 in late 2023, and began to proudly fly it from Chengdu-TFU to Beijing-PEK and Shanghai-PVG.
Today and the Future
As of May 2024, China Southwest Airlines primarily operates Airbus A320neo, Airbus A321LR, and Comac C919 aircraft, which together form one of the youngest fleets in the industry. A new company policy was set down in 2019 requiring all pilots and cabin crew to become qualified to operate both Airbus and Comac aircraft types, making dual-qualified employees eligible to receive 10% extra pay. Some pilots and cabin crew members are going further to gain additional qualifications to operate the upcoming Aria Transonic range of aircraft, as triple-certified pilots and cabin crew are eligible to receive a 20% boost in pay.
Only three older aircraft still remain: One Airbus A319 and two Airbus A320-200s, which are expected to leave the fleet during the summer of 2024 when the airline is to receive its first three 102-seat Aria T102 Transonic airliners. Flight schedules posted on 31 March 2024 indicate the T102 will start servicing flights in early June between Chengdu-TFU and cities such as Lhasa-LXA, Urumqi-URC, and Dandong-DDG with a few weekend flights scheduled to Shanghai-PVG. It is hoped that the T102’s ability to cruise at higher speeds - up to 705 knots for up to 75 minutes for flight, just above the speed of sound, or at a subsonic cruise speed of 635 knots - will result in faster block times and better profitability along thinner routes, especially those with longer flight times.
China Southwest Airlines continues to await the arrival of its other new Aria aircraft type, the higher capacity 202-seat Aria T202 Transonic, slated to arrive in the latter half of 2024. The T202, with its best-in-class 5000 nm range, will be used to add new routes to Sydney-SYD and Melbourne-MEL and add seats on busier routes. Plans are also in place to open new connections to Male-MLE, Dubai-DXB, Istanbul-IST and to possibly return to European cities such as Paris-CDG and London-LHR.
Destinations
Domestic Route Network
China Southwest Airlines flies to 118 destinations within China and nearby Special Autonomous Regions (SARs) from its hubs at Chengdu-CTU and Chengdu-TFU.
Bangda-BPX
Beihai-BHY
Beijing Capital-PEK
Changchun-CGQ
Changde-CGD
Changsha-CSX
Changzhi-CIH
Chaoyang-CHG
Chengdu-CTU - Domestic and International Hub
Chengdu-TFU - Domestic Hub
Chifeng-CIF
Chongqing-CKG
Dalian-DLC
Dandong-DDG
Daocheng-DCY
Daqing-DQA
Datong-DAT
Dayong-DYG
Dazhou-DAX
Dongsheng-DSN
Dunhuang-DNH
Fuyang-FUG
Fuyuan-FYJ
Fuzhou-FOC
Ganzhou-KOW
Guangyuan-GYS
Guangzhou-CAN
Guilin-KWL
Guiyang-KWE
Haikou-HAK
Hailar-HLD
Hami-HMI
Hangzhou-HGH
Harbin-HRB
Hefei-HFE
Heihe-HEK
Hengyang-HNY
Hohhot-HET
Hong Kong-HKG
Hotan-HTN
Huangshan-TXN
Huangyan-HYN
Huizhou-HUZ
Ji An-JGS
Jiamusi-JMU
Jiayuguan-JGN
Jinan-TNA
Jinchuan-JIC
Jingdezhen-JDZ
Jinghonggasa-JHG
Jining-JNG
Jiuzhaigou-JZH
Karamay-KRY
Kashi-KHG
Korla-KRL
Kunming-KMG
Lanzhou-LHW
Lhasa-LXA
Lianyungang-LYG
Lijiang-LJG
Liupanshui-LPF
Luzhou-LZO
Liuzhou-LZH
Macau-MFM
Manzhouli-NZH
Mudanjiang-MDG
Nanchang-KHN
Nanjing-NKG
Nanning-NNG
Ningbo-NGB
Nyingchi-LZY
Panzhihua-PZI
Quanzhou-JJN
Qingdao-TAO
Qiqihar-NDG
Sanya-SYX
Shanghai Pudong-PVG
Shantou-SWA
Shenyang-SHE
Shenzhen-SZX
Shigatse-RKZ
Shijiazhuang-SJW
Shiquanhe-NGQ
Shiyan-WDS
Taiyuan-TYN
Tianjin-TSN
Tonghua-TNH
Tongliao-TGO
Turpan-TLQ
Ulanhot-HLH
Urumqi-URC
Wanxian-WXN
Weihai-WEH
Wenzhou-WNZ
Wuhai-WUA
Wuhan-WUH
Xi'an-XIY
Xiamen-XMN
Xiangfan-XFN
Xichang-XIC
Xilinhot-XIL
Xingyi-ACX
Xining-XNN
Xuzhou-XUZ
Yancheng-YNZ
Yangzhou-YTY
Yanji-YNJ
Yantai-YNT
Yibin-YBP
Yichang-YIH
Yinchuan-INC
Yuncheng-YCU
Yulin-UYN
Zhangye-YZY
Zhanjiang-ZHA
Zhengzhou-CGO
Zhuhai-ZUH
Zunyi-ZYI
International Route Network
China Southwest Airlines flies to 20 international destinations from its hub at Chengdu-TFU. No international flights operate from Chengdu-CTU.
Bangalore-BLR, India
Bishkek-FRU, Kyrgyzstan
Cebu-CEB, Philippines
Danang-DAD, Vietnam
Delhi-DEL, India
Hanoi-HAN, Vietnam
Ho Chi Minh City-SGN, Vietnam
Kathmandu-KTM, Nepal
Kuala Lumpur-KUL, Malaysia
Mandalay-MDL, Myanmar
Manila-MNL, Philippines
Mumbai-BOM, India
Nha Trang-CXR, Vietnam
Osaka-KIX, Japan
Phnom Penh-PNH, Cambodia
Seoul-ICN, South Korea
Singapore-SIN, Singapore
Tashkent-TAS, Uzbekistan
Tokyo-NRT, Japan
Ulan Bator-ULN, Mongolia
Vladivostok-VVO, Russia
Yangon-RGN, Myanmar
Fleet
Current Fleet
China Southwest Airlines currently operates the following aircraft.
Airbus A319-100 - since 1999; to be retired soon
Airbus A320-200 - since 1992; to be retired soon
Airbus A320neo - since 2016; more ordered
Airbus A321LR - since 2022; more ordered
Aria T102 Transonic - added 2024; more ordered
Comac C919 - added 2023; more ordered
Former Fleet
China Southwest Airlines previously used the following aircraft.
Boeing 707-120 - 1988-1994
Boeing 707-320B - 1988-1991
Boeing 737-300 - 1988-2002
Boeing 737-600 - 1998-2011
Boeing 737-800 - 1999-2015
Boeing 757-200 - 1990-2022
Boeing 767-300ER - 1994-2005
Ilyushin Il-62 - 1988-1990
Sukhoi SSJ100 - 2011-2015
Tupolev Tu-154M - 1988-1998
Tupolev Tu-214 - 1993-2008
= Nota Bene =
China Southwest Airlines existed in real life from 1987 to 2002. It was also based at Chengdu-CTU, but IRL it had a 2nd hub at Chongqing-CKG. The real life China Southwest was merged into Air China in 2002 and Chengdu become Air China’s 2nd major hub (besides Beijing).
I decided to recreate China Southwest Airlines because I wanted to set up an airline operating China’s recently minted Comac C919 airliner. I was originally going to name it Chengdu Airlines, but then I found out there is a real life Chengdu Airlines still active. So I went with the China Southwest name but sort of applied Chengdu Airlines’ fleet to it, but added way more routes.
I’m also a fan of some of Russia’s airliners, especially the classic trijet Tupolev Tu-154, which comes up in this article along with the more recent Tupolev Tu-204/Tu-214. At some point I’m probably going to create a fictional Russian airline to write about. It would probably have a long history, likely as one of the Babyflots created in the 1990s following the breakup of the Soviet mega airline Aeroflot.
The Golden Sun Bird logo depicted on the tail of the aircraft for this fictional airline comes from the official logo for the city of Chengdu, which in turn depicts the Sun and Immortal Birds Gold Ornament, an ancient artifact dating back to 1200-1500 BCE that was unearthed at a Chengdu area archeological site in 2001. The real life Chengdu Airlines coincidentally uses the same symbol, but their livery uses brighter shades of red and gold than my version. I love this logo, it’s truly one of my favorites.
I have created liveries for Jade Air and plan to add a post about that airline in the near future. The character Hao Zhixin will factor into its history also.
I have not drawn up too much yet about Zhongguo Airlines, the in-story national carrier for China, but at some point I will no doubt write up a post about it. I expect that airline to be seriously huge, so it will likely come along later not sooner, probably after I roll out one or two major US carriers so I can work out how to present them properly.
Lastly… Please note that while I can speak a very tiny bit of Chinese, I speak it very terribly. Other than knowing the Chinese characters for “China” (中國, Zhōngguó) and “America” (美國, Měiguó), as a practical matter I can only read or write Chinese using Pinyin (aka Hanyu Pinyin, aka the Chinese Phonetic Alphabet) where the language is written in the Latin script.
To make up for this very sad deficit in my knowledge of the Chinese language, I turned to Google Translate to help me write out “China Southwest Airlines” in traditional Chinese script: 中國西南航空, in pinyin Zhōngguó Xīnán Hángkōng. I intentionally left out the word Gōngsī (公司, “company”) because I saw no reason for it to be on part of the brand name, especially not on the company’s aircraft.
Based upon further research, the characters I used appear to be correct, but Google Translate is not perfect, so they might be wrong. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
if what I wrote was in fact wrong, native or fluent speakers/writers of Chinese are welcome to send me written corrections in comments, so I may update the page and the illustrations accordingly.