Case Type: new product, math problem. Consulting Firm: Bain & Company first round summer internship job interview. Industry Coverage: airlines. Case Interview Question #00627: Our client China Southern Airlines Company Limited is an airline headquartered in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, People's Republic of China. It is the world's sixth largest airline measured by passengers carried, and Asia's largest airline in terms of both fleet size and passengers carried. China Southern Airlines is one of China's "Big Three airlines, alongside Air China and China Eastern Airlines. From its main hubs at Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport and Beijing Capital International Airport, the airline flies to 121 destinations. The client already operates two daily flights from Guangzhou, China to Sydney, Australia, offering connections to Perth, Sydney. The CEO of China Southern Airlines has hired your consulting firm Bain to evaluate a new direct flight between Guangzhou and Perth. Should they create this new route from Guangzhou to Perth? Additional Information: (to be given to candidate if requested) 1. Market At this point there is no other airline flying from Guangzhou to Perth, and there is only one competitor Qantas Airways flying from Guangzhou to Sydney. Sydney to Perth is a domestic route with one competitor. The market grows with GDP. 15% of passengers from Guangzhou to Sydney (or return) have Perth as the original or final destination China Southern Airlines current load factor in Guangzhou to Sydney flight is 80% Ticket price to fly from Guangzhou to Sydney or Guangzhou to Perth is $600 one way 2. Flight distance Guangzhou Guangzhou - Sydney = 4,800 miles Guangzhou - Perth = 3,800 miles Sydney - Perth = 2,350 miles 3. Aircraft type 3,800 miles 4,800 miles Airbus 319 (120 seats) has a maximum fly range of 4,000 miles Airbus 320 (165 seats) has a maximum fly range of 6,000 miles Airbus 330 (240 seats) has a maximum fly range of 7,000 miles Perth 2,350 miles Sydney 4. Costs Airbus 319 (120 seats) has a fixed cost of $41,000 Airbus 320 (165 seats) has a fixed cost of $62,000 Recommended Approach: This is a typical BCG style case. BCG often uses real life cases, presents available data upfront in a table during the case interview, and drives the interview to be a conversation between the interviewer and the interviewee. Therefore, be sure to engage the interviewer as you approach the case. The interviewer was expecting the interviewee to first provide a structure/framework, which would look at the big picture and then start hypothesizing. A strong candidate would: Discuss market dynamics (local and international and supply/demand). . Discuss the expected competitive response to any action, e.g., a price war. Summarize all findings in a presentation format