China US flights are expected to double! Starting from October 29th, China Airlines will increase its weekly operations to 24 flights per week

After three months, there has been another breakthrough in the new round trip between China and the United States.

On August 11th local time, the US Department of Transportation issued a new notice stating that starting from September 1st, 2023, Chinese airlines can operate 18 regular passenger flights between China and the United States per week. Starting from October 29th this year, it will increase to 24 classes per week. Among them, the Chinese airlines involved include Air China, Capital Airlines, China Eastern Airlines, China Southern Airlines, Hainan Airlines, Sichuan Airlines, and Xiamen Airlines.

New notice from the US Department of Transportation

It is worth noting that several airlines have taken action recently to further apply for additional direct flights between China and the United States.

On August 11th, both Air China and China Eastern Airlines submitted their latest direct flight plans to the US Department of Transportation. Among them, Air China plans to apply for an additional round trip flight from Beijing to Los Angeles every Friday between August 25th and October 27th. China Eastern Airlines plans to apply for an additional round-trip flight between Shanghai and Los Angeles every Thursday from August 24th to October 28th.

Air China's new application for additional flights

New application for additional flights from China Eastern Airlines

On May 3rd this year, the US Department of Transportation announced for the first time in three years the addition of direct flights between China and the United States, allowing Chinese airlines to operate 12 regular flights between China and the United States per week. This means that the number of round-trip flights between China and the United States operated by Chinese and American airlines will be equivalent, reaching 24 per week. The last time Chinese airlines added flights to the United States was in August 2020.

According to the latest plan released by the US Department of Transportation, the number of existing direct flights between China and the United States will double after October 29th this year.

Recent policy releases and statements have sent positive signals for further expansion of flights between China and the United States.

On August 10th, the Chinese Ministry of Culture and Tourism announced the third batch of outbound team tour countries, including not only Japan, South Korea, the UK, Australia and other countries, but also the United States.

On June 18, after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken's visit to China, in response to the question of when China and the United States will increase the number of passenger flights, Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning said on June 20 that both sides agreed to encourage the expansion of cultural and educational exchanges between the two countries, actively discuss the increase of passenger flights between China and the United States, welcome more students, scholars, business people to visit each other's countries, and provide support and convenience for this. "The competent authorities of China and the United States are maintaining communication on the issue of increasing passenger flights, and we are also willing to work with the United States to promote the increase of flights with a flexible and pragmatic attitude."

According to a reporter from Pengpai News, the main domestic carriers currently operating round-trip flights between China and the United States are Air China, China Eastern Airlines, China Southern Airlines, and Xiamen Airlines. Among mainland cities, Shanghai has the highest number of flights between China and the United States, while other departure cities include Beijing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Xiamen. Los Angeles is the US city with the most direct flights to mainland China, while other destinations include New York, Dallas, San Francisco, Detroit, and Seattle.

In addition to the overtime of Air China and China Eastern Airlines, the market is also concerned about whether the China US route will welcome new carriers and destinations. According to Li Hanming, a civil aviation industry insider, "At present, ground service resources and personnel in the United States are still relatively scarce. To fly to the United States, it is necessary to evaluate whether local resources can match. In addition, after September, international students have started school, which is the off-season of the China US market. Airlines also need to evaluate the benefits of increasing flights. At the same time, the new policy of the Civil Aviation Administration of China encourages the development of international hubs. At present, it may be difficult for Chinese carriers outside of Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Xiamen, and existing carriers to obtain the right to travel to the United States."

According to the third-party travel data app "Flight Manager", during 2019, there were over 300 round-trip flights between China and the United States per week.

In the past three years, affected by the COVID-19 epidemic, flights between China and the United States have been cut in a large scale. At the beginning of 2020, major US airlines such as United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and American Airlines suspended all Chinese passenger flights. On March 26, 2020, the Civil Aviation Administration of China began implementing the "Five Ones" policy for international passenger flights, retaining only a small number of operations for flights between China and the United States. On June 16, 2020, the United States suspended all scheduled passenger flights between China and the United States operated by Chinese airlines.

Since then, flights between China and the United States have been gradually increasing. The number of round-trip flights between China and the United States operated by Chinese and foreign airlines has increased from 4 to 8 per week; On August 18, 2020, the number of scheduled flights between China and the United States reached 16 per week, with 8 scheduled round-trip flights operated by Chinese and American carriers each week. Starting from November 2020, US airlines will operate an additional two flights per week, allowing them to operate 10 flights between China and the United States per week.

Starting from January 8, 2023, Chinese and foreign airlines can resume international passenger flights in accordance with the agreement, while lifting temporary restrictions on the number of international passenger flights and passenger occupancy rates. Subsequently, starting from March this year, the US airline will operate an additional two flights per week, bringing the weekly number of round-trip flights between China and the United States that the US airline can operate to 12.

With the expected doubling of direct flights between China and the United States, ticket prices for flights between China and the United States may further decrease.

Regarding the development trend of ticket prices for flights between China and the United States, Huang Kang, the President of Delta Air Lines China, told a reporter from The Paper in late January this year that the airline actually sets the final ticket price based on demand and flight volume. If demand is not enough, the ticket price cannot be so high. In the first two years, there were many factors that affected the flight volume, and now the environment has changed. As for how it will change in 2023, many uncertain factors will affect the final demand and actual operating flight volume.