Company Profile


China Southern Airlines Company Limited, with world headquarters based in Guangzhou, has its company logo seen around the globe with a brilliant red kapok delicately adoring a blue vertical tail fin.

As the largest airline in the People’s Republic of China, China Southern Airlines is pleased to operate eight holding public air transportation subsidiaries including Xiamen Air, Henan Airlines, Guizhou Airlines and Zhuhai Airlines; 20 branches including Xinjiang, Northern and Beijing Branches; 23 domestic sales offices in nearly every major Chinese city including Hangzhou and Qingdao as well as 54 international sales offices located in major metropolitan destinations such as Singapore, New York City and Paris.  

The airline radiates its distinctive cultural character of “Sunshine China Southern” and its mission continues to be "Connecting the World to Create a Better Life”.

With “Customer, Staff, Advantage, Innovation, Return” as its core values and the “Diligent, Practical, Inclusive, Innovative” spirit, China Southern is dedicated to fulfilling its vision of “Building a World-class Airline with Global Competitiveness”.

In 2019 and 2020, China Southern safely transported more than 152 million passengers and 97 million passengers, leading all Chinese carriers for 42 consecutive years. The airline is ranked 1st in Asia and 2nd globally in terms of annual passenger traffic and the top 10 globally in terms of cargo and mail volume (Source: IATA).

As of December 2020, China Southern had a fleet of more than 860 passenger and cargo aircraft, including the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, B777 and B737, as well as the Airbus A380 superjumbo, A330 and A320. It was one of the first airlines in the world to operate the A380 superjumbo.

Currently, China Southern operates an extensive route network of more than 1,000 routes with 3,000 daily flights to 224 destinations in 40 countries and regions around the world, offering more than 500,000 seats.

Through close cooperation with its global airline partners including American Airlines and Qatar Airways, China Southern continues to extend its route network to more destinations around the world.

In recent years, China Southern has been fully dedicated to building its comprehensive Guangzhou-Beijing “dual hubs” by launching new routes and optimizing its route network.

At the airline’s home base located at Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport, China Southern has been making remarkable progress over the past decade in developing its “Canton Route” family of travel products to serve the many nations located along the “Belt and Road” as well as the sprawling Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

At the close of Year 2019, China Southern served 132 destinations from  Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport, including 51 international and regional destinations.

Guangzhou has become the No. 1 gateway hub from China’s mainland to Australasia and Southeast Asia, forming a “4-hour air traffic circle” with major cities in China and Southeast Asia, and a “12-hour air traffic circle” with major international destinations.

As the largest hub carrier at the new Beijing Daxing International Airport (PKX), China Southern takes up more than 50% of slot resources.

In October 2020, all China Southern flights to/from Beijing has been relocated to PKX and its self-built aircraft hangar, operation control center and air catering production base - the largest of their kinds in Asia - are already in daily operation.

By Year 2025, China Southern is expected to deploy more than 200 dedicated aircraft to PKX with more than 900 daily aircraft movements.

China Southern is committed to working with all parties to build Beijing Daxing International Airport into a new world-class aviation hub as well as a convenient and efficient gateway of China.

China Southern has actively responded to and provided strong support for China’s “Belt and Road Initiative” and in its key regions of South Asia, Southeast Asia, South Pacific and Central and West Asia through its decades-long well-established route network.

This decisive leadership position among all Chinese carriers in terms of the number of flights, flight frequencies and market share, makes China Southern a major force in building air connectivity between China and countries and regions along the “Belt and Road”.

China Southern is singularly honored to hold the best safety record among all Chinese carriers with outstanding safety management levels in the world.

In June 2018, China Southern was honored with the Two-Star Flight Safety Diamond Award by the Civil Aviation Administration of China with the highest safety rating in China.



China Southern has the capability to train pilots independently with more than 10,000 professional aviators currently in service.

Its Zhuhai Xiangyi Simulator Training Centre is one of the largest training centers in Asia with the most extensive range of flight simulator models and the longest history of operation in China.

China Southern is also pleased to partner with Germany’s MTU Aero Engines to operate the largest and most advanced aero engine overhaul and maintenance facility in China.

China Southern’s self-developed “Flight Operation Control System” and “Engine Performance Monitoring System” were honored with the “Second Prize for National Scientific and Technological Progress”, offering the most state-of-the-art IT systems in the Chinese aviation industry.

China Southern Air Logistics, with Guangzhou and Shanghai as its hubs, operates the largest fleet of 16 freighters in China’s mainland.

China Southern is committed to developing a world-class service brand combining “affinity and refinement” to deliver an exceptional and seamless travel experience to all passengers.

As of December 2020, China Southern’s Sky Pearl Club frequent flyer program has more than 60 million members. In July 2020, China Southern launched a new membership tier - Sky Pearl Platinum - and fully enhanced its membership program which provides members with a full range of exclusive travel services.

China Southern’s Nanland Air Catering Center has an annual production capacity of more than 90 million in-flight meals, offering the finest gourmet Cantonese and Western cuisine for every pallet.

As a SKYTRAX-listed Four-Star Airline, China Southern was, in 2016, honored as "The World's Favorite Airline" and in 2018 named "The World's Most Improved Airline" by SKYTRAX.

Subsequently in 2017 and 2020, China Southern was honored twice as the national "Customer Satisfaction Benchmark" enterprise by the China Association for Quality and was awarded the AAA certification, the highest quality credit rating in the market.

In 2020, China Southern became the first airline in Asia and the third in the world to be certified by IATA for luggage tracking and “Green Flight”, featuring China Southern’s exclusive “On-Demand Dining” catering service, has reduced waste of nearly 1.2 million in-flight meals, with which China Southern won the championship at the first “GoldenKey-China Action for SDG” championship competition.



China Southern faithfully fulfills its Corporate Social Responsibility as a state-owned enterprise which has been widely applauded by all sectors of the society.

In the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak in 2020, China Southern formulated transportation support plans and was the first airline in China to announce the complimentary transport policy for epidemic prevention materials. Major transport missions were completed safely and efficiently with 18,000 medical relief flights operated, which safely transported 25,000 medical staff and 29,000 tons of medical supplies and repatriated 24,000 Chinese citizens who were stranded abroad.

In 2020, China Southern was ranked 7th in Brand Finance Magazine's 2020 list of “The World's Top 50 Most Valuable Airline Brands”.

At the “2019 Chinese Brand" event hosted by China Media Group, China Southern was listed among the “Top 100 Model Brands” in China. With a brand value of RMB148.6 billion, China Southern was ranked 39th among “China's Top 500 Most Valuable Brands” and was rated 116th among “Asia's Top 500 Brands” by the World Brand Lab.

Starting in 2020, China Southern will be sponsoring the China International Import Expo for five consecutive years as both a Core Supporting Enterprise and a Designated Air Carrier.