China Southern Airlines Announced New Pilot Training Program.

GUANGZHOU, China -- China Southern Airlines, (NYSE:ZNH)(HKSE:1055)(SHA:600029) - www.cs-air.com/en - with the largest and most technically advanced aircraft fleet in The People's Republic of China announced that it will be the first mainland airline to recruit 100 pilots who are willing to pay for their own flight training.

Chinese airlines normally cover all the costs of pilot training but China Southern is aiming to train more pilots at their own expense to meet the crying demand, according to Yu Renlu with Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC).

The civil aviation sector is expected to have a shortfall in demand of almost 10,000 pilots by 2010, said Mr. Yu.

More than 90 percent of China's pilots are trained by the Sichuan-based Civil Aviation Flight University of China (CAFUC) under the supervision of the CAAC, which recruits up to 1,000 pilots a year.

Pilot trainees have to study and train in the CAFUC for four years before they graduate with a license and a bachelor's degree.

Airlines spend almost a million yuan ($130,000 USD) to train each pilot, said Wang Renjie, of China Southern.

Chinese pilots trained in this way are usually obligated to serve long-term contracts with the same airline.

Mr. Yu said the country would urge the CAFUC to produce more pilots but at the same time seek alternative training scenarios in order to provide more pilots to meet the market demand.

The 100 pilot trainees under the China Southern program would study at the CAFUC for two years, including 18 months of flight training to get a license, except for those who failed the examinations.

Men aged 20 to 27 with at least a high-school diploma could sign up at the website of China Southern for enrollment by the end of June, said Mr. Si Xianmin, President of China Southern.

They are expected to pay about 652,000 yuan (84,675.3 U.S. dollars) each for the training and are allowed to work for other airlines when they fulfill the required service for China Southern Airlines.

Trainees could get bank loans to cover expenses with China Southern Airlines acting as the warrantor, and they would be expected to repay the loans from their salaries within 10 years.

China's pilots can expect to earn around 2.9 million yuan over 10 years and the bank loans along with the interest would be about 900,000 yuan.

The largest airline in The People's Republic of China for the past 28 years, China Southern Airlines - www.cs-air.com/en - connects more than 80 cities around the globe. Major business and vacation destinations served in China include: Beijing, Chengdu, Guangzhou, Guilin, Hong Kong, Kunming, Shanghai, Shenzhen and Wuhan and as well as International service, including: Amsterdam, Bangkok, Fukuoka, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Islamabad, Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta, Lagos, Los Angeles, Manila, Melbourne, Moscow, Osaka, Paris, Penang, Phnom Penh, Seoul, Singapore, Sydney and Tokyo.

For China Southern Airlines reservations and information, please contact your local travel agent.