Flights to Shanghai begin on April 8

Low-cost carrier Spring Airlines will begin operating daily flights between Macau and Shanghai from April 8.A 180-seat Airbus will fly every day from Macau at 7:10am arriving at Shanghai Pudong airport at 9:35am. Flights will depart from Shanghai at 10:30am and arrive in Macau at 12:55pm.Yesterday, the airline announced that the lowest round-trip fare will be priced at HKD 199, excluding the airport charges. The company’s spokesperson Zhang Wu An said that their goal is to keep fares around 30 percent lower than other airlines operating in Greater China.
After launching flights to Hong Kong, the Shanghai-based airline wants to strengthen its position in the Pearl River Delta region and in the Mainland. Currently, it operates routes to Guangzhou, Zhuhai and Shenzhen.

Macau is a very important route to Spring Airlines. Macau has become an important entertainment and gambling centre,the president of the company, Wang Zhen Hua, told reporters during yesterday’s press conference.He believes that the new route will “further create benefits and opportunities between the two places,mainland China and Macau.
Asked if Viva Macau’s problems were of any concern for the company, Wang refused any similarity with the local low cost carrier that was grounded last year.Based in Shanghai, Spring Airlines is the first low cost airline in China. In July 2010, it reported a half-year net profit of RMB 160 million, a fourfold year-on-year improvement, allowing the company to maintain a profit streak that goes back five years.