Recently, factors such as geopolitical conflicts and international oil prices have had a considerable impact on the global aviation industry. The phenomenon of “flight shortage” has become prominent and passenger travel has been under pressure.
However, in the complex external environment, my country’s civil aviation has steadily expanded its capacity, new international routes have continued to be added, and the route network has become increasingly dense.
On June 18, China Eastern Airlines flight MU255 took off from Shanghai Pudong International Airport and flew to Zurich, Switzerland for the first time. This is also the second Swiss route operated by China Eastern Airlines after the launch of the “Shanghai-Geneva” route in 2025.
Shi Yanyan, senior manager of the Network Revenue Department of the Marketing Department of China Eastern Airlines, said that from June to July this year, China Eastern Airlines will successively open routes from Shanghai Pudong to Adelaide, Stockholm, Tbilisi, Dublin and Cheongju, South Korea. Subsequent new routes such as Mumbai, India are also being steadily promoted.
In addition to China Eastern Airlines, Air China has successively launched routes from Beijing Daxing Airport to Frankfurt, Germany and Milan, Italy in the past two months.
Starting from June 20, Hainan Airlines will embed the Haikou-Chongqing-Madrid route into the China-Europe route network.
In June alone, Chinese airlines will open 50 international routes.
In addition, the opening and resumption of flights of China Southern Airlines’ Guangzhou-Urumqi-Frankfurt, Urumqi-Bishkek and other routes have further integrated more airports into the global route map, upgrading the route network from a single point of radiation to a national grid-linked layout.
In the past two days, Zhangjiajie Hehua International Airport has had multiple international and domestic flights taking off and landing every day.
International flights are almost full with foreign passengers, and domestic flights account for more than 50%.
American tourist Edward Guerra III said that the flight experience was very good, the airport and flight services were very good, and everyone he met was very friendly. China is a great country.
Another American tourist, Edward Guerra Jr., said that traveling in China is very convenient, with complete public transportation facilities, including light rail and airplanes, which are both comfortable and worry-free.
Currently, through direct flights and transfers, my country has formed a multi-level route network covering major global aviation markets.
In the summer and autumn flight seasons of 2026, my country will serve 86 countries, and the number of international flights will increase steadily. 191 airlines plan to arrange 21,047 international flights every week.
International flights achieved triple breakthroughs of “network expansion, density improvement, and market expansion”, with flight volume increasing by 1.8% compared with the same period last year.
Currently, many airlines around the world are reducing their capacity. Against this background, China’s civil aviation has adopted a different rhythm.
In the summer and autumn shipping seasons of 2026, my country’s international routes will continue to open, with sufficient capacity in popular directions such as Southeast Asia, and trunk routes operating steadily, demonstrating my country’s determination to open up.
At the Shenzhen Airport Port, foreign tourists of different skin colors and languages passed through in an endless stream. As of June 18, the number of people entering and exiting the port had exceeded 3.2 million, setting a record high for the same period in history.
As China’s visa-free “circle of friends” continues to expand and the dividends of the immigration policy continue to be released, many foreign tourists visit China to experience China’s urban landscape, booming economy and cultural heritage.
According to statistics from the Shenzhen Airport Border Inspection Station, as of June 17, the number of foreigners entering the country through the Shenzhen Airport Port this year exceeded 457,000, a year-on-year increase of 32.9%, from 190 countries and regions including Malaysia, South Korea, and Singapore.
Among them, foreign tourists who entered the country without visas accounted for 63.3%, a year-on-year increase of 45.5%.
Customs clearance facilitation continues to improve, driving strong release of two-way demand for entry and exit.
Zhu Tingting, deputy captain of the Second Team of the Shenzhen Airport Immigration Inspection Station at the Shenzhen Immigration Inspection Station, said that since the beginning of this year, more than 18,000 international and regional passenger flights have been guaranteed, and inbound tourism is very “hot”. Inbound foreign tourists for the purpose of sightseeing and leisure accounted for 47.9% of the total inbound foreign tourists, a year-on-year increase of 50.3%.
Strong policy support has promoted the steady expansion of my country’s route network; and the structural adjustment of the route network has also significantly enhanced the ability of China’s civil aviation to resist risks.
In the summer and autumn flight seasons of 2026, Chinese airlines accounted for 74.7% of the flights between my country and the countries co-building the “Belt and Road”, becoming a highlight of international market growth. The route network has expanded from traditional European and American hubs to emerging markets.
A tour guide from an international travel agency said that direct flights to Nepal are very popular, and the number of inquiries about Nepal’s tourism business has increased significantly. There were four groups in the first batch, with about 100 people, and there will be several more tour groups in the future.
Nida Wani, a tourist from Nepal, said that this was her first time in China and she planned to go to Hebei and Guangdong. She wanted to see Chinese history and culture and some Chinese food. She was very excited.
This summer and autumn shipping season, while international passenger routes have steadily increased, the number of passenger and cargo flights between my country and all continents has also increased across the board, with flights to 55 countries and more than 5,000 cargo flights per week, an increase of 3.7% over the same period last year.
The expansion and quality improvement of air cargo channels will promote the accelerated development of air cargo.
At 1:30 a.m. on the 20th, the “Jiaxing” Boeing 767 all-cargo plane took off from Jiaxing Nanhu Airport and headed for Budapest, the capital of Hungary. This is also the second international cargo route opened by Jiaxing Nanhu Airport after the Dhaka route was launched at the end of May.
He Yaoqi, general manager of Jiaxing Airport and Terminal Development Co., Ltd., said the routes for the first voyage were full.
Within the year, Jiaxing Nanhu Airport will also open six European routes to Liege, Belgium, and Milan, Italy, providing efficient and convenient air access for regional companies to deeply integrate into the global supply chain and expand the European market.
Zhong Shan, chief economist of the Air Transport Research Institute of the Academy of Aviation Sciences, said that from January to May this year, a total of 80 new international freight routes were opened across the country, focusing on Europe, Asia-Pacific and other directions. Comprehensive freight hubs such as Shanghai Pudong and Shenzhen Baoan remained at the forefront of the industry in terms of flight volume and freight volume. Emerging professional hubs such as Ezhou Huahu experienced significant month-on-month growth.
As the first professional cargo hub in Asia, Ezhou Huahu Airport has built an efficient air logistics system that can reach the whole country overnight and connect the world the next day, relying on a complete route network.
Here, the efficient model of cold chain logistics is being copied to more high value-added categories.
At present, the Phase II Medical Island project of the Fresh Food Port is accelerating. In the future, a temperature-sensitive pharmaceutical distribution center will be built to meet the strict timeliness requirements of special drugs such as targeted drugs.
Liao Jinxing, general manager of Ezhou Linkong Group Co., Ltd., said that cold chain logistics should be developed as the focus of the aviation industry because of its relatively high added value, relatively high requirements for cold chain logistics solutions, customs clearance efficiency and the blessing of routes. It is applying for the construction of a comprehensive bonded area, and will buy and sell globally, helping more companies to achieve greater development.
The booming development of cross-border e-commerce and the accelerated overseas expansion of high-end manufacturing provide air cargo with a steady supply of goods. This is also the natural confidence brought by the thickness of the industry.
The accelerated expansion of the air logistics network has also promoted the formation of a new air cargo development pattern of “linkage between land and sea, and mutual assistance between east and west”.
