(english.cnhubei.com) East Star Airlines, based in Wuhan, capital city of central China’s Hubei Province, received approval for the operation of its service from the General Administration of Civil Aviation in June 2005.

The company signed a letter of intent with Airbus to buy 10 A320s and a lease deal with GE Commercial Aviation Service (GECAS) for another 10 A320s on November 27. It plans to start its flight service in May 2006. The new airline company is owned by China East Star Group

Founded in June, 1991, East Star Group is one of the largest private enterprises in Hubei Province and has established sub branches in Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Hong Kong, Macau and Singapore.

The business of East Star Group covers from electronic products, hotel management, real estate, transportation, travel service to telecommunication and information technology industry. It is the largest computer sales company in central China and one of the few first-grade agents of IBM.

Lan Shili, president of the group, ranked 70 on China Rich List published by Forbes.