Singapore, Mar 29: Singapore Airlines will begin flying to China`s eastern city of Nanjing three times a week, the carrier announced.
Nanjing will be the airline`s fifth destination on the mainland with services starting this Sunday, an airline statement said. The carrier already flies to Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen.
Increasing numbers of Chinese tourists are making Singapore a holiday destination, with mainland visitors a leading contributor to the city-state`s monthly arrival totals.
Singapore Airlines was forced to drastically cut back flights last year because of a regional travel slump brought on by an outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome, but passenger numbers have rebounded strongly over the past few months.
The flag carrier`s overall capacity -- including cargo and passengers -- dipped to 58.7 percent at the height of the SARS crisis in April 2003, but has reached about 70 percent in recent months.
Singapore Airlines is majority owned by Temasek Holdings, the government`s investment arm.
Bureau Report
