The Ministry of Public Security and the General Administration of Civil Aviation of China (CAAC) have issued a joint regulation to step up pre-flight data reporting for passengers and crews on international flights, effective on May 1.

"International airlines should report accurate and complete passenger and cabin staff information to Chinese border control stations in a timely manner," said CAAC on its website on Tuesday. It said that the new rules were intended to guarantee aviation and public safety, part of a wider effort to tighten security ahead of the Beijing Olympic Games in August.

The required information includes name, nationality, gender, birth date, passport number, passport expiration date and other information for the crews and passengers of international flights.

The announcement came after a woman carrying a suspicious liquid that was allegedly to be used to crash a plane was apprehended in early March en route from Urumqi to Beijing on a China Southern Airlines flight.

"For those inbound international flights whose travel time is more than two hours, airlines need to declare the above information 90 minutes before the flight arrival," the regulation states. For flights of less than 2 hours, airlines should report the information 40 minutes before arrival.

Airlines failing to provide accurate information face fines according to the number of crew and passengers. For fewer than 10 people, the fine will be less than 10,000 yuan (US$1,425); for more than 10, it will be 1,000 per inaccurate report with a ceiling of 30,000 yuan.

Airlines failing to report within the stimulated time frame face a fine of 10,000 yuan to 30,000 yuan.

Airlines that don't comply could find that their flights are delayed or banned, according to the regulation.

Separately, excessive baby food, cosmetics and medicine, among other items, have been banned from carry-on luggage on domestic flights under another rule that went into effect in mid-March.

(Xinhua News Agency March 27, 2008)