China Southern Airlines, one of China's largest carriers, said yesterday it had become the 11th full member of the Skyteam global airline alliance.

The airline is the first domestic carrier to join a global alliance, and with its addition, Skyteam, which also has three associate members, will carry about 428 million passengers annually through a worldwide system of 16,400 daily flights to 841 destinations in 162 countries.

"We are excited to welcome China Southern Airlines into our network. This move allows us to offer our customers unparalleled access to the markets they want to reach," said Leo van Wijk, chairman of the Skyteam Governing Board, in a press release.

"China Southern Airlines' membership strengthens the alliance's position in serving the world's fastest growing markets."

The addition of China Southern will bolster the alliance's global hub network since the airline is the first carrier in China to run its own terminal at Beijing Capital International Airport.

China Southern is the nation's largest airline by fleet size, flights and passenger traffic. It operates more than 600 domestic and international routes serving 152 cities.

Liu Shaoyong, the chairman of China Southern, who attended the Beijing ceremony to mark the Skyteam membership, said the alliance would help the carrier accelerate its progress toward internationalization and promote its development.

"China Southern will make use of Skyteam's network to expand cooperation with all its members and better serve customers," Liu said.

The airline said that Chinese passengers would be able to get information at any of Skyteam's more than 2,100 ticket offices worldwide for normal travel arrangements, as well as discounts offered by Skyteam.

International passengers can obtain flight and travel assistance from any member airline of Skyteam.

"We fully support airlines joining global alliances, which will help the industry to upgrade expertise, management and service quality," said Yang Yuanyuan, head of the General Administration of Civil Aviation. He said such alliances would also promote the internationalization of the Chinese aviation industry.

China is one of the fastest growing aviation markets in the world. The CAAC plans to open up all domestic air routes by 2010. Airlines will no longer need approval for new domestic flights and they will only have to submit plans to add services.

(Xinhua News Agency November 17, 2007)