I have only flown with Air China within China, I have to agree that they are not "great", although they don't seem any worse than the US airlines to me.
I am not the OP's authorised spokesperson, but I have quite a number of times been asked (in English) by Chinese people where I am "living", when what they want to know is which hotel I am staying in. So perhaps the two posts are not inconsistent.
Edit - how quickly memory fades. I have flown internationally on Air China, from Europe to SE Asia, changing in Beijing. My opinion remains unchanged - not great, but not too horrible either.