Industry insiders say that the extension of the high-speed railway network in China will increase competition between airline companies and railways.

Regional airliner Joyair declared on March 25 that it is temporarily suspending their flights from Zhengzhou to Xi'an after Henan Airlines also suspended the same route in early February.

Insiders widely believe that the suspension of Zhengzhou-Xi'an route is caused by the launch of a high-speed railway linking Zhengzhou, the capital of central China's Henan province and Xi'an, capital city of northwest China's Shaanxi province.

The Zhengzhou-Xi'an high-speed railway is the second longest passenger dedicated line in the country, following the Wuhan-Guangzhou high-speed railway. The Zhengzhou-Xi'an railway was put into use on February 6 with a maximum speed of 394.2km/h. It is also the first high-speed railway in China's western region.

Compared with train ticket prices of 390 yuan and 240 yuan for the first-class and second-class seats respectively, the airlines' full price tickets seem unnecessary as prices reach towards 500 yuan, excluding airport construction fee and jet fuel surcharges.

"I took the high-speed rail from Zhengzhou to Xi'an recently. It only took me about 2 hours. The flight time between the two cities is 1.5 hours. Taking into account the time spent on the way, at check-in, registration and in waiting for the luggage, airlines take more time. Therefore, many passengers are choosing the high-speed railway instead of the airlines," said Dr. Wang Tieshan from school of Economics and Finance, Xi'an Jiaotong University.

An anonymous official of Joyair predicts that the competition between the high-speed railway and airlines will be fiercer in the future. The high-speed railway lines from Zhengzhou to Shijiazhuang, Xuzhou and Wuhan are under construction, and the new high-speed railway network is on the way. This will exert immense pressure on the profits of regional flights.