The Civil Aviation Administration of China will further lower the threshold for domestic route applications and give more freedom to airlines in the second half of the year, in a bid to boost the development of the sector, Xinhuanet.com reported.

The top civil aviation regulator also pledged to advance the price reform of the domestic air transportation sector and give more power to carriers, said the report, which cited an anonymous source at the regulator.

Li Jiaxiang, head of the regulator, said that both the revenue ton kilometer, or RTK, and revenue passenger kilometer, or RPK, indicators rose at a double-digit rate in the first half of the year, while cargo and mail volume also increased in the same period.

"China's aviation industry is at a crucial moment for grabbing strategic development opportunities," Li said.

Li said CAAC will restructure the industry by encouraging the development of the aviation sector in central and western parts of China, supporting cargo, low-cost and general aviation companies, and enhancing the international competitiveness of Chinese carriers.

(China Daily USA 08/14/2013 page16)