Han Ximin, Sun Haiying

ximhan@126.com

CHINA Southern Airlines started offering a through-ticket service for international passengers who transfer at the Shenzhen airport last week.

The through-ticket service applies to the 15 international flights operated by the airline, including flights to Sydney, Moscow, Osaka, Phuket, Bangkok, Dubai, Bali Island, Jakarta, Seoul and Rangoon, among others.

This means passengers with the airline don’t need to claim their luggage when transferring in Shenzhen. At the departure airports in mainland cities, the airline will provide a boarding card for the destination, and the luggage will be consigned to destination airports when passengers transfer in Shenzhen.

For example, flight CZ3152 from Beijing to Shenzhen was delayed to 6 p.m. July 31 due to Typhoon Wipha, but 29 passengers needed to take flight CZ3071 to Sydney at 7 p.m. Without the through-ticket service, passengers needed to claim their luggage and finish check-in and boarding within an hour. It was a nearly impossible mission.

However, with the through-ticket service, travelers can now take the shuttle buses directly to the waiting hall and complete boarding through priority passage. Their luggage will be transferred directly to the flight to Sydney after undergoing security checks. The service will save a lot of time on luggage collection and check-in.