Six new Chinese aviation groups are expected to be born in the next half year as part of the reform of China's civil aviation industry and the General Administration of Civil Aviation of China (CAAC), said Yang Yuanyuan, director of the CAAC.

Addressing a CAAC senior officials meeting Thursday morning in Beijing, Yang said that this was a substantial step toward the separation of state enterprises and a government department.

The State Council had approved the proposal of establishing AirChina Group and China Aviation Fuel Group, said Yang. The other proposals -- establishing China Eastern Airlines (Group), China Southern Airlines (Group), China Civil Aviation Information (Group) and China Aviation Supplies Import and Export (Group) -- had been formally submitted to the State Council for approval.

In addition, the plan to set up an aviation police force was about to be submitted to the State Council for ratification. Meanwhile, the CAAC and other relevant state ministries were working on the reform of airport management and public security.

Experts hold that the restructuring of China's aviation industry will improve industrial management and enhance aircraft utilization and the sharing of resources. It will also help reduce operation costs and increase profits, so as to improve the competitiveness of China's civil aviation industry in the face of international competition, they claim.

(Xinhua News Agency July 25, 2002)