Tibet Airlines eyes European market

(BEIJING) - Tibet Airlines, which plans to launch its first domestic flights from the remote Himalayan region next year, is eyeing direct flights to Europe to pull in tourists, state media said Wednesday.

The state-owned airline plans to start direct flights to European countries in 2015 or 2016 amid efforts to boost tourism in Tibet, the China Daily reported, citing Tibet Airlines chief executive Liu Yanping.

The carrier also plans to expand its fleet to 50 aircraft by 2020, the newspaper said.

European aircraft maker Airbus said last week it had won a contract for three A319 medium-haul jets from Tibet Airlines, which plans to have some 20 planes in the next five years.

Tibet Airlines is scheduled to make its maiden flight in August 2011, with routes linking the regional capital Lhasa and key cities across China expected to be launched by 2012, the report said.

Flights to South Asian and Southeast Asian countries could start in 2013, it said.

The Buddhist region is a major tourist attraction but the industry has suffered in the past from political tensions. China banned foreign tourists following deadly anti-Chinese riots in Lhasa in March 2008.

Beijing again barred foreigners in March last year during the tense 50th anniversary of a failed 1959 uprising against China that sent the Dalai Lama, the Tibetan spiritual leader, into exile.

But the local government has been slashing the cost of holiday packages and promoting new tourism spots to draw visitors back to the impoverished area.

In the first quarter of this year, a total of 177,000 tourists visited the picturesque region, up 27.8 percent from the same period a year ago, official data showed.

Tibet Airlines has a registered capital of 280 million yuan (41 million dollars) and is majority owned by the state-owned Tibet Investment Co, with remaining stakes held by two private companies.