Introduction
China Airlines is the largest airline in Taiwan. It is also the flag bearer of the Republic of China. The company was started in 1959 with the aim of enhancing transport in the larger China region. This company is not directly owned by any of the states. It is owned and managed by the China Airlines Group, which is a constituent of the China Aviation Development Foundation. The government of the republic of China is the owner of the China Aviation Development Foundation. The company main operates from the Taiwan International Airport. Most of its destinations are Asia, Europe, North America and Oceania. The company owns some subsidiaries, which aid in its operations in other countries and regions within China. As one of the largest companies in China, China Airlines fetches adverse advantages over other airlines in the country (China Airlines, 2012). However, this has not protected it from massive challenges that result from poor operations within the region. This defines massive problems that the company faces in its operations.
Comparison with competitors
Despite being the most outstanding Airline Company in the region, China Airlines has faced adverse challenges, which have created room for competitive forces from other Airline companies. The greatest opening for challenges from other companies has resulted from the adverse risks that the company has exposed its clients to. The Airline has been presented as one of the most insecure aircrafts.
The company has experienced several air crashes, which have claimed lives of its esteemed clients. The company has been viewed as a persistent violator of safety measures. Most of the crashes that the company has been involvedinvolved in being related to negligence of certain rules. It has been recorded that one of the crashes was as a result of ignorance of Boeng rules, which state that no airplane should fly with a half full fuel tank (China Airlines, 2012). Other crashes are related to poor maintenance of the aircraft, which have also claimed several lives through complications developed from improvement of minor defects.
Ignorance by pilots has been another main cause of crashes in the company. This comes from lack of proper expertise among pilots to control minor problems that may be developed when the plane is taking off or is about to land (Samanta & Faheem, 2010, P.23).
These problems are exceedingly significant platforms for competitors to outdo the company in the Airline market. Every client would wish for a safe flight, free of challenges, which may cost his or her life (Samanta & Faheem, 2010, P.36). Therefore, if China Airlines does not improve its operations, it is likely that it will lose its customers to its competitors in the industry.
Like its competitors, China Airlines needs to adopt most modern forms of aircraft that would aid it in withstanding the competition. Most of the international Airlines have chosen to operate through the Boeng planes. This is one of the most modern forms of aircrafts, which is unique in operations as well as safe for its clients (Alon, 2003). The company has enough money to purchase such aircrafts.
Being the biggest Airline Company in China, the company has an extremely good advantage over its competitors. It is easy for the company to dominate the market since through the government business activities in the market may be influenced. The company has exposure to the most diligent flight staff, who should govern safe operations in the company (, 2011, P.76). This would bar massive competition in the company.
Analysis of the China Airlines
The problems that the company faces may not be squared to one party. They are built on a platform influenced by internal and external forces operating against the China Airlines. In the internal analysis, several operations or activities may significantly contribute to the downfall of the company. One of the main forces is the faulty pilot recruitment policies. The company has not established proper methods of recruiting employees. This is a main challenge since it leads to hiring of incompetent pilots who may lead to crashes at work through their inadequate expertise. Such pilots will always lead to extra cost, which may result from crashes caused by their inadequate experience in the field. Indulgent flight training method is the other internal force that would have reared the problem. The company has not identified efficient methods to hire staff (Alon, 2003). This has led to leakage of uncompetitive flight attendants who cannot identify problems in the aircraft that are likely to cause massive loss.
Slipshod maintenance systems also cause massive challenges in the operations of the China Airlines. This yield high cost of operations increasing problems involved in the operations of China Airlines. Inefficient corporate culture, which is characterized of cost minimization policies by the management, which has sacrificed safety standards for the company increasing on the woes that the company experiences in its operations (Samanta & Faheem, 2010, P.54).
External constraints may be defined by one core factor that has had a massive impact to the operations of the company. Overwrought political relations between Taiwan and mainland China is the main threat to proper operations of the company. The policy protected the company from launching routes of operations in China only. This was a barrier to a larger market.
Strategic options
Despite experiencing massive problems in its operations, China Airlines can regain its favor through adoption of strategic measures as the driver to prosperity of the business. The company had a perfectly tarnished name, which required massive and informative intervention that would govern its destiny or success.
One of the strategies that the company employed is retraining of pilots. Most of the accidents that were reported in the company were related to negligence by pilots. Some of them were ignorant to minor problems, which later built up to platforms for crashes. To prevent reoccurrence of these problems the company employed measure that would equip pilots with the necessary knowledge on the planes that they operate such that they would be able to detect mechanical problems as they occur (Samanta & Faheem, 2010, P.87).
Flight attendants also need be equipped with adequate knowledge on the basic operations of the plane. This would assist in controlling problems that the pilot may not identify since he, or she has no chance of moving around the plane during a flight (, 2011, P. 48).
Necessary maintenance procedures needs be adopted in the company. There are reports that the company has severally experienced crashes as a result of minor problems developed from poor maintenance methods. The company did not only employ human maintenance system it also adopted computerized system maintenance. Computerized system is more reliable than human maintenance. It may detect minor problems, which may not be identified through manual work (, 2011, P.112). This would keep the company free from crashes as a result of mechanical problems resulting from poor mechanical maintenance.
Strengths and weakness of China Airlines
Strengths
China was the first Airline in Taiwan and the Republic of China. This makes it the largest airline in Taiwan and among the leading airlines in Asia. The company operates in one of the best airplane models of AB 330-300. This is known as one of the most reliable aircrafts with no air crash associated with this model of airplane (Samanta & Faheem, 2010, P. 91). This gives China Airlines credit on its operations since it has won the trust among many clients, giving them excellent business.
The company also operates its activities in more than 84 cities located in 27countries and regions in the globe. This means that the company has a wide customer base. Many people choose the company for both business and leisure travel.
The company also derives its strength from its commitment to proper service delivery and innovation with consistent technology improvement. This fosters teamwork spirit among employees driving the company towards the realization of the vision of the company.
Weaknesses
The company still faces challenges in assuring its clients of their safety during a flight. Previous crashes that the company has experienced poses significant weakness for the company. China Airlines is consistently looking for ways through which it would link up to its lost clients (CAL e-News, 2012). This means that the company has to invest more in market building and maintenance.
The company has not also been able to link up with adequate staff compensation. The company has poor compensation plan, which limits them from fostering adequate services to the company. The company has a tremendously poor pension benefit system.
Following the adverse crashes that the company experienced, it faces challenges in conducting investigations as well as outlining penalties for the subjects or contributors to different crashes.
Business model
In the definition of its business in the aircraft industry, China Airlines aims at enhancement of massive and reliable services for its clients. The company has chosen to operate in a tremendously wide business model.
The company has chosen to employ full service carrier business model as it fetches some traits from low cost carrier business model.
The full service carrier model encompasses business from human flights to cargo flight in many countries. In passenger services, the company has opened increased services to cities in mainland like Beijing, Shanghai, Nanjing and Guangzhou (, 2011, P. 97). This has provided more convenience for clients operating between China and Taiwan.
For cargo services, China Airlines called for direct, cross trait charter flights to Shanghai and Guangzhou. These are new cargo destinations, which are immensely profitable for the company. This is a milestone for cross-strait direct cargo consignment. The model also dictated for the first ever cross-strait humanitarian charter, which is a flight to Chengdu in Sichuan province (CAL e-News, 2012).
As a result of the launch of the inaugural flights, China Airlines will offer seven to eight round trip cargo flights to Guangzhou and Shanghai respectively per month.
The China Airlines Company has signed a cooperation agreement with China Cargo Airlines and China Southern Airlines to barter cargo space. This would provide more opportunities and convenience for cargo customers. The company also became the first carrier to make a deal with Chunghwa Post Corporation to deliver daily mail and postal goods to China through both freight charter and passenger flights (CAL e-News, 2012).
The business model has also assisted the company in developing outstanding tour packages, which aid in advancing the market for the China Airlines.
However, through the model the company is assured of more business opportunities, which will lure the growth of the company.
Challenges and opportunities
During its operations, China Airlines has faced adverse challenges. Most of the challenges relates to the management of the company. This encompasses different aspects, which govern the success of the company.
Human resource management is one of the sectors in the company that has developed massive negative traits for the company. The company has been unable to control its hiring process for skilled labor and expertise for pilots. Negligence of duties by some flight attendants have been leading causes for air crashes (Alon, 2003). This is a considerable challenge for the company as it becomes hard for the management to define how it would change the minds of customers who have developed tainted image for the company.
Pilots being extremely vital in any Airline company have been neglected in the China airline. It has become exceedingly hard for the company to recruit qualified pilots as it lacks proper methods to conduct the activity (, 2011, P.68).
However, there are adverse opportunities that surround the company despite massive challenges that follow the company. One of the opportunities that are out for grab by the company includes positive outlook for Asia Pacific air transportation market (CAL e-News, 2012). This will fetch massive gains for the company as it will have larger ground of play.
The other opportunity that the company may look up to is the Chinese travel and tourism industry. Many people have found China as their destiny for leisure. Therefore, much emphasis on this industry would mean more profit for the company.
Recommendations
Despite the massive challenges that the company has undergone, it still incurs high count of profit. However, the company may adopt some measures that may influence its activities and operations. The company needs to employ measures that will allow higher performance and reliability by the clients.
One of the recommendations is that the company needs to develop a forum. For example, through the social sites like Facebook and Twitter that would allow exchange of ideas and views between the administration of the company and clients. This would enhance company- customer relationship, which is vital for the business to thrive.
The management of the company should also develop a well structured remuneration and rewarding system. This would act as a platform for motivating its employees to perform better, which would increase turnover for the company.
The company may also increase its productivity by linking up with sky teams to make it one of the most unswerving companies in the sector as well as increase its revenue.
China airlines may also open its operations in remote countries, where air transport is not fully developed. This would open markets for the company paving the way for massive gains for the company.
Conclusion
Although China Airlines is the first airline company in China and Taiwan, it faces adverse challenges in its operations. Challenges for the company are internally developed as well as externally influenced. Internal forces are based n poor management systems as well as poor hiring strategies. External forces are political differences that come along as a result of business operations by the company in China and Taiwan. The success of the company is built on proper analysis of the weaknesses, strengths and opportunities for the company. Interweaving above factors with the excellent full service carrier business model has brought life to the operations of the company. However, profit may increase through proper analysis of new techniques that may be used in the business. The company may foster company-customer relationship, which would build success for the company. The management should also ensure proper care for the employees through motivation and rewards to encourage high performance of the company.
References
Alon, I., 2003, Chinese economic transition and international marketing strategy. Westport, Conn.: Praeger.
CAL e-News. 2012, October 23, China Airlines. China Airlines Strives Toward 50th Anniversary. Retrieved January 5, 2013, from
China Airlines., 2012, December 17). China Airlines. China Airlines. Retrieved January 5, 2013, from
Samanta, M., & Faheem, H., 2010. Problems at China Airlines. Problems at China Airlines, 1(1), 1-20.
.,2011, Articles on China Airlines Accidents and Incidents. London: Hephaestus Books.
