Since October, several major Chinese airlines have announced their plan for the resumption of international flights.
China's State Council, headed by Premier Li Keqiang, decided in May to "orderly increase the number of domestic and international flights while taking convenience measures for the travel of foreign company staffers."
In July, Chinese civil aviation regulator CAAC said that it "will keep negotiating with other countries to increase the number of international flights gradually." CAAC also said that scheduled international passenger flights would be resumed stably to fulfill the demand of overseas Chinese students who need to return or leave China.
Major airlines' resumption plan
China's big three (Air China, China Eastern, China Southern) have announced their scheduled flight plans for the upcoming winter-spring season from October 30th, with more international routes to be restored, added, or newly opened.
China's flag carrier, Air China, will resume multiple routes between Beijing and Manila, Jakarta, Tokyo, Warsaw, Athens, Vancouver, Los Angeles, and Toronto.
China Eastern Airlines published its latest international flights plan on its official Weibo page on October 17th, including 108 weekly international flights from the end of this month, doubling the current 54 international flights. The resumed flights include Shanghai to Bangkok to Qingdao, Hangzhou/Qingdao/Nanjing/Kunming to Tokyo Narita, Qingdao/Nanjing/Yantai to Seoul Incheon, Qingdao to Dubai, and more.
China Southern plans to resume or increase the frequency of scheduled flights between its base in Guangzhou and Jakarta, Tokyo, Dubai, Manila, Bangkok, and Phnom Penh.
Most resumed routes mentioned have been suspended due to the COVID-19 outbreak in early 2020.
The Shanghai-based budget carrier, Spring Airlines, will resume its regional services to Hong Kong, Macau, Osaka, Tokyo, Seoul, and Bangkok. Juneyao Airlines, another Shanghai-based private carrier, will resume its Nanjing to Seoul and Nanjing to Osaka flights this month.
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Flight prices are finally becoming reasonable
Ticket prices have been sky-high since the large-scale suspension of international routes, but are now beginning to fall significantly with the number of international flights surging. For example, Spring Airlines' Shanghai to Tokyo one-way economy-class ticket is sold at 3,382 Yuan ($467). Previously it could easily cost more than 10,000 Yuan ($1,383).
The ticket price for some popular routes, like London Heathrow to Shanghai Pudong, has been significantly reduced since the route resumed in August. For example, the direct flight provided by Air China from London to Shanghai on November 17th is being sold at 22,806 Yuan ($3,155 US dollars). Before the resumption of direct flights, the same ticket was easily sold for over 70,000 Yuan, despite the transfer-transit process. However, it is still more expensive than the business class price before the outbreak.
In the meantime, foreign carriers are also gradually resuming or increasing their flights to Mainland China despite the ongoing meltdown policy.
For example, Etihad Airways Flight EY868 from Abu Dhabi to Guangzhou landed at Baiyun International Airport on October 11th. The flight is not only its first restored flight to the Chinese mainland since the COVID-19 outbreak but also its first new Chinese route for a decade. The Middle East carrier plans to further restore its regular services to Shanghai, Beijing, and Guangzhou.