China Eastern Air (CEA) Holding has sold nearly half of its freight subsidiary to four companies in the country’s first mixed-ownership reform in the aviation sector. CEA Holding, the parent company of China Eastern Airlines, signed the deal for Eastern Air Logistics with Legend Holdings, Global Logistic Properties, Deppon Logistics and Greenland Financial. CEA Holding will keep 45% of the freight unit. Legend Holdings will hold 25%, Global Logistic Properties 10%, and courier firm Deppon and Greenland 5% each. Eastern Air Logistics’ core employees will take the remaining 10%. CEA Holding said CNY4.1 billion of state and non-state capital was invested in the cargo unit, which brought its debt ratio down to 75%, from 87.86% at the end of 2016. “Eastern Air Logistics aims to become a world-class air logistics company on par with FedEx, UPS and DHL,” said Liu Shaoyong, Chairman of CEA Holding. China has been conducting mixed-ownership reforms in debt-ridden state-owned enterprises, including bringing in multiple types of investors to central SOEs, exploring flexible and market-based salary systems, and selling shares to SOE employees, the Shanghai Daily reports.

Walt Disney Corp’s Shanghai Disneyland is on track to achieve break-even in the first year of operation, CEO Robert Iger said. That is the first such achievement among Disney’s recently built facilities, Iger added. The park, which has received more than 11 million visitors, marked its first anniversary on June 16. With the new Toy Story Land set to be operational next year, Iger said his company is ready to further invest in this landmark resort to make it even bigger, a topic discussed during a meeting with Shanghai Mayor Ying Yong. The visitor turnout would place Shanghai Disneyland among the top 10 amusement parks in the world by attendance, on the benchmark of 2016 statistics by the Themed Entertainment Association and consultancy Aecom.

HNA Infrastructure, operator of Haikou Meilan International Airport, expects to see a sharp rise in revenue from its duty-free stores as Hainan develops into an aviation hub and a duty-free shopping paradise. The company’s aviation business would also grow when the airport’s phase two development, which features a new runway, becomes operational in two years. HNA Infrastructure Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Zhou Feng said the phase two development aimed to boost not only the airport’s passenger capacity, but also its non-aviation revenue, which is mostly business from the duty-free stores. “The company is looking to generate 70% of its revenue from the non-aviation sector as China hopes to make Hainan a top duty-free shopping destination,” Zhou said. Currently, more than 40% of the group’s revenue comes from its non-aviation business. HNA Infrastructure, formerly known as Hainan Meilan International Airport, provides terminal facilities, ground handling services and passenger services. It also leases commercial and retail space and operates duty-free stores at Haikou airport.

Airbus Helicopters is moving forward with its strategic partnership with China, with construction now underway on its first helicopter assembly line for the H135 chopper in Qingdao. With an investment of more than €10 million, the plant is expected to be completed by 2018. 100 Airbus H135s will be assembled over the next 10 years and the first aircraft rollout from Qingdao is planned for mid-2019. The production line will have a total installed annual capacity of 18 helicopters, which can be extended for future growth.

China and Russia announced a joint venture to develop a wide-body jet which will challenge market leaders Boeing and Airbus. The news comes just over two weeks after the successful maiden flight of China’s first domestically developed narrow-body passenger jet, the C919. The China-Russia Commercial Aircraft International Corp, established by state-owned Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC) and United Aircraft Corp of Russia, was officially registered and obtained a business license. The new jet’s maiden flight is planned for 2025 and the first jet should be delivered around 2028. The new plane aims to take 10% of the market from the Boeing 787 and Airbus 350. The wide-body jet will seat 280 and have a range of up to 12,000 kilometers. It will mainly be built with composite materials.