Air China tackles services to narrow gap with Cathay

SHANGHAI - Air China Ltd, the nation's largest international carrier, said it is working on more than 100 service improvements as it competes with Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd and Delta Air Lines Inc on overseas routes.

Targets include onboard catering, seat comfort, inflight entertainment, call-centre operations, maintenance and cleaning, Senior Vice-President He Li said on Thursday in an interview in Beijing. The airline is also deploying a mobile-phone text messaging system, he said.

"This year we want to focus on improving services," He said. "We couldn't do it during the financial crisis as then we were tied up with avoiding losses."