Hong Kong Airlines sets sights on Gatwick's business passengers

Hong Kong Airlines is to target Gatwick's corporate passengers with all-new business class flights between London and Hong Kong.

Offering two different tiers of business class, Classic and Premier, the carrier hopes to emulate the success of club class services provided by other airlines, such as British Airways.

Gerard Clarke, Hong Kong Airlines' UK country manager, told Air and Business Travel News that the airline has two very distinctive clientèle in mind for the service.

"One is the top-end corporate markets, so the banking community in the city, the legal profession, and the insurance sector - so people in the square mile and Canary Wharf," he said.

"The second group I would say is the SME (small and medium enterprise) market. China is becoming increasingly important for that group of travellers out of the UK, so we will give them the option of travelling into Hong Kong and making a very convenient connection into china from there."

Choosing Gatwick as a base for the venture was an obvious choice for the airline. With a wide range of corporate services that include prestige car hire, Gatwick is one of the UK's definitive business airports. Just like Hong Kong, it offers international links to other European, Asian and Gulf financial capitals too.

According to RedhillAndReigateLife.co.uk, the Airbus A330-200 non-stop services operated by Hong Kong Airlines are due to begin in March of next year.