Originally Posted by
maddjake
I haven't had any trouble being stuck in a middle seat, but so far my observation with China Southern is that it has a very unreliable schedule. (Perhaps this is true with Chinese airlines in general?)
HU is the clear "leader" in this category, IME, which helps explain why their fares are so cheap (compared to other options). But, the cool thing about booking HU is that your y230 ticket from PEK to SHA will often convert itself into full fare as soon as those guys cancel (call before you go to the airport). Then, you can switch to MU and upgrade into something really snazzy for a mere $40.
MU and CZ are almost as bad. Revisiting the PEK-SHA route, MU has a ton of flights on its schedule. On light travel days, this "ton" often gets reduced to a handful. Meanwhile, CZ only has one flight.... a 777 that goes down and back in the morning. Considering that it probably costs them $100k for the return trip, in cases when it is booked less than 50%, the plane never leaves the ground.