Ticket prices are expected to further decrease, 24 pairs per week! US Department of Transportation approves doubling of flights between China and the United States to increase routes | Flights | US

Introduction: With the further increase in the number of direct flights between China and the United States, it also means that ticket prices will further decrease.

Author | First Financial Chen Shanshan

On August 10th local time, the US Department of Transportation issued the latest notice approving Chinese airlines to further increase direct flights between China and the United States.

A few days before this, China had just approved the resumption of the third batch of team tours to multiple countries, including the United States.

According to a reporter from First Financial News, Air China and China Eastern Airlines have applied to the United States for new flights on China US routes, and ticket prices on China US routes are expected to further decrease.

Additional classes are available from September 1st

According to the latest announcement from the US Department of Transportation, starting from September 1st, Chinese airlines are allowed to operate 18 pairs of direct passenger flights between China and the United States per week, and from October 29th, it will be increased to 24 pairs per week.

At present, Chinese airlines operate 12 pairs of direct passenger flights between China and the United States every week, which means it will be able to double after October 29th.

According to a reporter from First Financial News, there are currently four Chinese airlines, Air China, China Eastern Airlines, China Southern Airlines, and Xiamen Airlines, operating routes between China and the United States. Among them, Los Angeles has 8 direct flights to China per week, making it the city with the most direct flights to mainland China in the United States. The remaining four direct flights of China Airlines are to New York every week.

The recent policy releases and statements from both China and the United States have provided more optimistic expectations for further escalation of tensions between the two countries.

On June 18, during the visit of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to China, China and the United States 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, and business people to visit each other's countries, and provide support and facilities for this purpose.

Just the day before yesterday, the third batch of outbound team tour countries released by the Chinese Ministry of Culture and Tourism also included the United States, providing policy support for the expansion of trips between China and the United States.

With the further increase in the number of direct flights between China and the United States, it also means that ticket prices will further decrease.

Airlines have applied for additional flights

Just yesterday, Air China submitted the latest direct flight plan between China and the United States to the US Department of Transportation, which includes one new weekly flight from Beijing to Los Angeles.

The latest flight plan specifically states that from August 25th to October 27th, 2023, an additional round trip between Beijing and Los Angeles every Friday is requested.

Afterwards, China Eastern Airlines also submitted an application to the US Department of Transportation for an additional weekly round-trip flight from Shanghai to Los Angeles. It is expected that China Southern Airlines and Xiamen Airlines will also submit new applications for additional flights.

Before the epidemic, more Chinese airlines such as Hainan Airlines, Sichuan Airlines, and Capital Airlines were also operating flights between China and the United States. Regarding whether there will be more Chinese airlines applying for the increase in flights between China and the United States, civil aviation industry insider Li Hanming analyzed to reporters that the 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 in the China US market, airlines also need to evaluate the benefits of increasing flights.

This is actually an important reason why US airlines are not in a hurry to increase flights between China and the United States. Given limited human resources, choosing to operate more profitable European and American routes may be more profitable for them compared to increasing flights between China and the United States.

According to reporters, even with the increase of 24 round-trip flights per week, the number of flights between China and the United States is still far from before the epidemic. Before the epidemic, there were over 300 direct flights between China and the United States per week, and the current flight volume is less than one tenth of that before the epidemic. A large number of passengers traveling between China and the United States still need to be transshipped.

However, there are also new US airlines hoping to enter this market. At the end of July, the US Department of Transportation announced that it had approved a new US airline to operate a four weekly Kennedy Shanghai Pudong route. This newly acquired US airline, also known as China Eastern Airlines, also has China US air rights. However, its ability to operate also requires approval from the Civil Aviation Administration of China.