China’s growing importance in the aviation industry was reinforced by the recent opening of a new north Asia regional office in Beijing for the International Air Transport Association (IATA). The association’s director general and CEO Giovanni Bisignani said 38 per cent of passengers in Asia either start or end their journey in China.

China’s aviation industry has grown rapidly in recent years, IATA said, with its aircraft fleet increasing from 480 to 1,400 over the past decade.