(Yicai Global) July 19 -- The passenger load factor on domestic Chinese flights reached a historical high in the first half of this year, even as some travelers chose to take high-speed and bullet trains.

The passenger load factor was 84.9 percent, up 1.6 percentage points from the same period last year, the Paper.cn quoted Dong Faxin, deputy director of the Civil Aviation Administration of China's Division of Development and Planning, as saying at a CAAC news conference yesterday. "It should be said to be the best level we have ever achieved in the same period," he said.

Ticket prices during the Spring Festival rose about 9 percent annually and dropped in February, March, April and June, Dong said. February saw a 5.9 percent decline in ticket prices.

Ticket prices may increase slightly for the Golden Week, Spring Festival and May Day Holiday, Dong said.

The number of passengers and the passenger load factor for flights headed from China to Japan and South Korea declined in the first half, Dong said. "This may also lead tothe redistribution of tourists," he said.

Domestic flights transported 237 million travelers from January to June, marking a 14.2-percent increase annually, a rise of 0.1 percentage points over the first-quarter growth rate and 5.1 percentage points over that of the same period last year. International flights carried 26.7 million, up 6.1 percent annually, a 4.2-percentage-point drop from the first-quarter growth rate.