Lucky Air (Kunming, Yunnan, China) on July 14 took delivery of the first Boeing 737-800 painted in the new 2015 livery.
In other news, Lucky Air today (July 16) inaugurated the Kunming-Phuket route.
Copyright Photo: Ivan K. Nishimura/AirlinersGallery.com. The pictured Boeing 737-84P B-6015 (msn 41809) passed through Honolulu on its long delivery route.
Boeing (Chicago, Seattle and Charleston), Hainan Airlines (Haikou and Beijing) and Sinopec today celebrated China’s first passenger flight with sustainable aviation biofuel, a key environmental milestone for China’s commercial aviation industry.
The regularly scheduled Hainan Airlines flight – which carried more than 100 passengers from Shanghai to Beijing in a Next-Generation 737-800 – used biofuel made by Sinopec from waste cooking oil collected from restaurants in China. Both of the airplane’s CFM International CFM56-7B engines were powered by a fuel blend of approximately 50 percent aviation biofuel mixed with conventional petroleum jet fuel.
Sustainably produced biofuel, which reduces carbon emissions by 50 to 80 percent compared to petroleum through its lifecycle, is expected to play a key role in supporting aviation’s growth while meeting environmental goals. The Boeing Current Market Outlook has forecast that China will require 6,020 new airplanes by 2033 to meet fast-growing passenger demand for domestic and international air travel.
In China, Boeing collaborates with a wide range of stakeholders to develop a new sustainable aviation biofuel industry. In 2011, Air China conducted China’s first aviation biofuel test flight in a Boeing 747-400 using China-grown, jatropha-based biofuel. Boeing also partners with the Commercial Aviation Corp. of China (COMAC) and several research institutions, including Chinese Academy of Science’s Qingdao Institute of Bioenergy and Bioprocess Technology (QIBEBT), on aviation biofuel development.
Boeing also works with airlines, research institutions, governments and other stakeholders to develop sustainable aviation biofuel in the United States, Africa, Australia, Brazil, Europe, Japan and the Middle East.
Copyright Photo: Steve Bailey/AirlinersGallery.com. The pictured Boeing 737-84P WL N5515X (msn 39208) became B-1928 when it was handed over to Hainan Airlines on February 21, 2014.
Hainan Airlines aircraft slide show: 
Fuzhou Airlines (Fuzhou, Fujian Province, China) today (October 30) launched scheduled passenger operations between Fuzhou and Beijing with Boeing 737-84P B-5503 (msn 36782) leased from Hainan Airlines (Haikou and Beijing). The new airline is a joint venture between Hainan Airlines and Golden Resources Investment Group which is a state-owned asset investment company.
The airline received its AOC on October 17.
Photo: Fuzhou Airlines.
Urumqi Air (Urumqi, Xinjiang) is a new airline in China. The new airline is a joint venture between the HNA Group and the state-owned Urumqi Urban Construction Investment Company Limited.
Urumqi Air will be based at Ürümqi Diwopu International Airport, in the capital of Xinjiang in the remote northwest part of China (please see map above).
Urumqi Air took delivery of Boeing 737-84P B-2157 (msn 32600) from Hainan Airlines on August 20 which will provide the technical support and three leased Boeing 737 aircraft for the new carrier. The parent HNA Group will control 70 percent of the stock. Operations are due to start now on August 29, delayed from August 15.
Read the full report from Travel Daily Asia: CLICK HERE
The logo “integrates the three-color Adlai silk and flying dove, which highlights the geographical reputation of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, symbolizing peace and friendship” according to wcarn.com.
Map: Google Maps.
Hainan Airlines Boeing 737-84P WL B-5520 (msn 35765) BFI (Nick Dean) (latest delivery), originally uploaded by Airliners Gallery.
Hainan Airlines (Haikou), the first airline in China to operate with Aviation Partners Boeing Blended Winglets, has committed to equip all future 737-800 aircraft deliveries with winglets. Hainan has currently 45 Boeing aircraft on order.
Copyright Photo: Nick Dean. Boeing 737-84P B-5520 (msn 35765) with Blended Winglets touches down at Seattle (Boeing Field-King County).
Air Italy (Milan-Malpensa) is acquiring its first Boeing 737-800. Ex-Hong Kong Express 737-84P I-AIGN (MSN 35074) was accepted on June 16 and will fly to Bournemouth for repainting. It is due in Verona around June 24.