Passengers wait at a Shanghai airport for a delayed flight on October 12, 2013. Photo: CFP

An Air China flight from Nanchang, Jiangxi Province, to Beijing on April 7 allowed an "important passenger" to board despite being more than five minutes late after the cabin door was closed, yet rebuffed a regular passenger who was late by just two minutes, the Legal Mirror reported.

The "important passenger" was an elite member of the Phoenix Miles Club, the ground staff explained when they were confronted by the rebuffed passenger, who claimed that the "important passenger" was Zhao Baige, the vice-president of the Red Cross Society of China.

Zhao did not respond to the issue as of press time.

The reference to Zhao, who is a vice-ministerial level official, brought a long-standing service regulation within China's civil aviation system to public attention. The regulation states that airline companies and airports should provide "VVIP service" for high-ranking officials.

If the "important passengers" are late, airline companies will usually wait for them to board, even if it causes flight delays, several staff members with airline companies confirmed to the Legal Mirror, adding that they normally use "air traffic control" as the excuse to tell other passengers.

As some questioned how many times they had suffered flight delays because of these late "important passengers" without knowing the real reason, others joked that they get to enjoy punctuality on their flights when there are "important passengers" on board since these flights take precedence over others.

Experts say that in a society grappling with issues of equality amid a breakneck speed of development, policies such as "VVIP service" will face renewed scrutiny.

Two decades of 'VVIP' service

The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) first published the service regulation for "important passengers" in 1993.

It stipulates that special services be provided to high-ranking officials who are at and above the ministerial level, and leading figures in the military or diplomatic envoys, as well as other important guests.

Airline companies and airports are required to give priority in booking tickets for these passengers, and their flights shouldn't be randomly changed or cancelled.

There are special "VVIP" departments within airline companies responsible for receiving the passengers and providing extra services.

"We are often glad to have 'important passengers' on board because it usually means we will take off on time," Liu Xing (pseudonym), a pilot with Air China, told the Global Times on Monday.

The air traffic control department receives early notice and clears the way for the flights, and those flights can take precedence over other ones at the same time, Liu said.

Liu said that he's never experienced flight delays for "important passengers" in the six years of his career, but learned from his peers that it happens sometimes.

"Sometimes our superiors will replace us and pilot the airplanes themselves if the passengers are very high-ranking," Liu said, adding that they usually don't get to know who the "important passengers" are.

This is not the first time the 21-year-old policy caught people's attention. The Southern Weekly discussed the service in a 2011 report with many details about how different departments cooperate to ensure high-quality flights for VVIP passengers.

The flight attendants need to go through strict scrutiny to serve these passengers and they need to learn about the passengers' habits and preferences, the report said.

The complaints from important passengers are far more serious than regular passengers, Li Jun (pseudonym), an attendant with the "VVIP" department from a southern airline company, told the Southern Weekly.

"The company won't review complaints from important passengers the same way they do with the others, and the whole crew of the flight will get downgraded if they are not satisfied," Li said.

Controversial privileges

Over the years, the "VVIP" services have been upgraded by some airline companies and the service standards have gone beyond the original regulations, said aviation expert Zhang Zhaohui.

"Some airline companies have even expanded the service to influential figures in other fields other than the government departments, such as in the business and cultural circles," Zhang added.

"The CAAC takes the 'VVIP' service as a political task and puts in too much manpower and resources to the mission," civil aviation insider Zhu Wenchuan told the Global Times on Sunday.

"Important passengers enjoy too many privileges and it's against the nature of the civil aviation services," Zhu said. "This service should be abandoned especially when the country is calling for a cleanup of undesirable work styles such as bureaucracy and extravagance."

However, Zhang said that there are national conditions and international conventions that warrant the CAAC providing such differentiated services.

"Airline companies also need to cater to high quality customers including officials and other influential figures in order to develop and seek profits in a market-oriented economy," Zhang said.

However, Zhang also pointed out that as people pay more attention to disparities within society, airline companies will need to reconsider some of the privileges attached to the service.

In addition, the standard of the "VVIP" service for officials is likely to be downgraded and there will be fewer officials enjoying it, Zhang added.

Stunted private industry

Liu Guangcai, a professor with the Civil Aviation University of China, told the Legal Mirror that the "VVIP" service will probably last for quite some time due to the way civil aviation is developing in China.

Liu said that China's general aviation needs further development to help transfer "VVIP" services for important passengers from civil aviation to the private and corporate plane markets.

"It costs too much to buy and operate airplanes in China," Liu said, adding that the airspace reform is still in the early stages, and this hinders the operation of private and corporate planes.

"It costs a lot and needs more time," Liu added.

Zhu echoed Liu's opinion by saying that China is not ready to develop the private plane industry since the general aviation sector has a weak foundation. "The staff, technology and equipment maintenance in general aviation haven't met the requirements," Zhu said.

He added that the development of general aviation requires the air force to relinquish control over some airspace to help airspace management reform.

"Safety is the top concern in the development of general aviation and we should avoid aggressive advances," Zhu said.