Spring Airlines to start Shanghai–Kaohsiung route

Spring Airlines has announced that it will start flying between Pudong, Shanghai and Kaohsiung from October 27 onwards, making it the first and only low-cost carrier to connect Mainland China with Taiwan. The new service will be flown by an A320 three times a week. The 180-seat aircraft has two classes – 12 premium economy and 168 economy seats – arranged in a 3-3 configuration. The flight departs Shanghai every Wednesday, Friday and Sunday at 1220 and arrives in Kaohsiung at 1430. The return leg leaves at 1530 for a 1740 arrival back in China. A spokesperson for the airline confirmed to Business Traveller Asia-Pacific that Kaohsiung, the second-largest city in Taiwan, is a travel hotspot specifically for tourists and business travellers in Shanghai, and nearby regions such as Hangzhou. Click here for a Kaohsiung feature article from Business Traveller Asia-Pacific’s April issue. The airline just received its first Sharklet-wing-tipped A320 last month (see here), and plans to operate it from Shanghai to Shenzhen, Changchun and Zhanjiang, as well as on the Hangzhou–Changsha route. Spring Airlines' Sharklet-wing-tipped A320  For more information, visit www.china-sss.com/en Valerian Ho