Spring Airlines (9C, Shanghai Hongqiao) Deputy General Manager (Strategy), Jonathan Hutt, has confirmed the allure of the low-cost, longhaul business niche to the Chinese LCC.

In an interview with CAPA, Hutt said there is a "good business case" for the carrier to consider the segment despite obstacles in regulations as well as slot constraints at Chinese airports such as Shanghai Pudong, Spring Air's main hub.

Hutt noted Spring Airlines would need to have a "very strong network" for it to consider launching such a product in 2018. As such, the LCC would be open to potentially participating in a feeder agreement similar to what Norwegian (Oslo Gardermoen) and Ryanair (FR, Dublin International) are proposing to do in Europe this summer, he said.

Privately-owned Spring Airlines currently operates a fleet of sixty-eight A320-200s with three more due for delivery on lease from AWAS in 2018. It terms of network, it offers regular flights to eighty destinations around China as well as Thailand, Japan, Cambodia, South Korea, Hong Kong, Singapore, Macau, Taiwan, Vietnam, and Malaysia.

For its part, HNA Group's unit Lucky Air (China) (8L, Dali) will become China's first budget carrier to venture into the longhaul segment when it launches flights from Kunming Changshui to Moscow later this summer.