Kunming Airlines (昆明航空公司) will launch its maiden flight on February 15, flying from Kunming to Changsha and on to Harbin, according to an announcement by majority shareholder Shenzhen Airlines yesterday.

The new airline, which was originally expected to start operations last month, is aiming to increase connections between Yunnan and China's second-tier cities as well as increasing air connectivity between Kunming and Southeast Asia. Tickets for flights on Kunming Airlines (code: KY) are now on sale nationwide.

Shenzhen Airlines owns 80 percent of the new airline, for which it has provided two B737-700 and one B737-800 aircraft plus 30 pilots and 26 flight attendants.

According to Kunming Airlines' development plan, the airline will spend the next three years adding to its fleet of aircraft and building an extensive flight network within Yunnan, as well as adding routes to provincial capitals around the country.

The airline's chief rival within Yunnan is China Eastern Airlines' Yunnan subsidiary which recently split with its Shanghai-based parent company after a tough year in Yunnan last year which saw mid-air protests by pilots followed by harsh punishment from aviation regulator Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC).

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