Very interesting articles. I just wasn't aware how close Air China was in 2009 to fly to MAN with the traffic rights in place. Could certainly see them here especially so with the Chinese investment of Airport City and judging by passenger numbers posted on here of MAN-Beijing potential, the route could support a chinese carrier. I'm sure Zurich has been mentioned as a potential stop if the MAN route was announced?
Also the articles are 10 years old so a little of date. The Emirates route mentioned is already served direct now and PIA do stop on the JFK route