Lucky Air (Chinese: 祥鹏航空公司; pinyin: Xiángpéng Hángkōng Gōngsī) is a Chinese low-cost airline based in Kunming, Yunnan, China.[2][3] The airline started with flights connecting Kunming with Dali and Xishuangbanna, and later expanded to other domestic and international destinations. Its main base is Kunming Changshui International Airport.[4] The airline is one of the four founding members of the U-FLY Alliance.

Lucky Air
祥鹏航空公司
Lucky Air 737-74P in standard livery
IATA ICAO Call sign
8L LKE LUCKY AIR
FoundedJuly 2004;
21 years ago
 (2004-07)
(as Shilin Airlines)
Commenced operations26 February 2006;
20 years ago
 (2006-02-26)
Operating bases
Frequent-flyer programFortune Wings Club
Fleet size51
Destinations61[1]
Parent companyHNA Aviation
HeadquartersKunming, Yunnan, China
Key peopleMa Guohua (Chairman)
Websitewww.luckyair.net
Lucky Air
Chinese祥鹏航空公司
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinXiángpéng Hángkōng Gōngsī
Wade–GilesHsiang2-pʻêng2 Hang2-kʻung1 Kung1-ssŭ1
Headquarters

History

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The airline was established in July 2004 as a start-up airline known as Shilin Airlines. Hainan Airlines had invested 2.93 million yuan in the company, while its affiliate Shanxi Airlines invested 47.07 million yuan. The airlines provided the new company with three Dornier aircraft, a Boeing aircraft, and a Dash-8. The Yunnan Shilin Tourism Aviation Co. also invested a further 1 million yuan.[5]

On 23 December 2005, Shilin Airlines was renamed Lucky Air. It started operations with a flight between Kunming and Dali within Yunnan on 26 February 2006.[citation needed]

The airline is owned by Hainan Airlines, Shanxi Airlines and Yunnan Shilin Tourism Aviation. It has 263 employees (at March 2007).[4]

The airline is one of the four founding members of the U-FLY Alliance, which is the world's first alliance of low-cost carriers. It formed in January 2016 by HK Express, Lucky Air, Urumqi Air, and West Air. Lucky intended to deploy 787-9s to Europe and North America by the end of 2016.[6]

On 10 January 2025, Lucky Air flight 8L843 left Dali Fengyi Airport for Kuala Lumpur, marking the first international direct air route from the prefecture.[7]

Destinations

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As of April 2026, the airline serves destinations in China, Vietnam and Indonesia.[8]

Fleet

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Lucky Air Boeing 737-800 in Phuket
Lucky Air Airbus A320-200 cabin

As of August 2025, Lucky Air operates the following aircraft:[9]

Lucky Air fleet
Aircraft In Service Orders Passengers Notes
J Y Total
Airbus A320-200 7 6 150 158
Airbus A320neo 6 186 186
Airbus A321neo 1
Airbus A330-300 4 24 279 303
Boeing 737-700 9 8 120 128
148 148
Boeing 737-800 20 8 156 164
Boeing 737 MAX 8 4 [10] 8 168 176
Total 51

References

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  1. "Lucky Air (China) on ch-aviation.com". ch-aviation.com. Retrieved 21 November 2023.
  2. "联系我们 Archived 25 August 2012 at the Wayback Machine." Lucky Air. Retrieved on 26 August 2012. "云南省昆明市春城路296号祥鹏航空大厦"
  3. "KunMin Office." [sic] Hainan Airlines. 10 November 2007. "#204 Chuncheng Road, Kunming (left to the Honghe Hotel)"
  4. 1 2 "World Airlines". Flight International. 3 April 2007. p. 107.
  5. People's Daily 29 July 2004
  6. "Lucky Air to be China's first long haul LCC, to Europe/N America in 2016; China international up 29%". Retrieved 8 September 2018.
  7. "Dali opens first direct air route to Kuala Lumpur". www.ecns.cn. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
  8. "Lucky Air Flights and Destinations". www.flightconnections.com. 3 April 2026. Retrieved 26 April 2026.
  9. "Global Airline Guide 2025 - Lucky Air". Airliner World: 56. September 2025.
  10. "China's Lucky Air to add four B737 MAX 8s". Retrieved 8 September 2018.
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