Intl travel to accelerate with new steps in place

Travel: Recovery of intl flight market may be slow

China's civil aviation authority is reviewing applications for the resumption of international flights by Chinese and foreign airlines after the nation's recent optimization of COVID-19 control policies, an official from the Civil Aviation Administration of China said on Tuesday.

Liang Nan, director of the administration's department of transportation, said international travel is expected to accelerate in the second half of this year.

"If the market recovers well, the number of international flights (to and from China) by the end of the year is expected to reach about 80 percent of the level before the COVID-19 pandemic, with about 7,300 flights per week," she said.

Liang made the remarks during a policy briefing in Beijing organized by the International Department of the Communist Party of China Central Committee to introduce the optimization of the country's COVID control policies to international business executives.

"Chinese and foreign airlines are optimistic about the resumption of international flights," she said, with nearly 40 domestic and overseas carriers having submitted applications so far to schedule about 700 passenger flights each week to and from 34 countries.

Most flights are scheduled to resume operations in late January and early February, and the administration is processing the applications, she added.

Meanwhile, the administration has resumed accepting applications for international passenger charter flights to meet the needs of business travelers, she said.

Liang also said the resumption of international flights will be slower than that of domestic ones.

"It (the international market) will take longer to recover, considering that the resumption of international flights is affected by multiple factors such as market demand, transportation capacity arrangements, time coordination and approval from domestic and foreign civil aviation authorities," she said.

Moreover, with the impact of the pandemic over the past three years, it will still take some time for passengers to prepare to travel abroad again, Liang added.

This week, 563 international flights are scheduled, she said. The number is expected to increase to 1,000 per week by the end of February, and, by late March, to 1,300 to 2,300 each week.

The administration will maintain communication with Chinese and foreign airlines to ensure they understand the updated policy, Liang said.

China recently optimized its policies on COVID management and cross-border travel, dropping measures such as closed-loop management and quarantine requirements. Nucleic acid test results are required for inbound flight crews and staff.

The move was welcomed by the industry and many countries.

"Lifting certain control measures for inbound international flights and removing quarantine for inbound passengers is a positive step for China," said Xie Xingquan, regional vice-president for North Asia at the International Air Transport Association.

Li Xiaojin, a professor of aviation economics at Civil Aviation University in Tianjin, said the policy adjustment will boost the growth of the aviation market and the national economy.

"The policy adjustment will greatly release demand to cross the border, which has been restrained for three years," he said.

Although China is making efforts to promote the resumption of international flights with other countries, some nations, such as South Korea and Japan, have recently imposed restrictions targeting Chinese travelers, including mandatory COVID testing upon arrival.

Earlier in this month, Willie Walsh, the International Air Transport Association's director general, said in a statement that COVID-19 testing requirements and other measures for travelers from China have proved ineffective, and he called for governments to base their decisions on "science facts" rather than "science politics".

"Several countries are introducing COVID-19 testing and other measures for travelers from China, even though the virus is already circulating widely within their borders," Walsh said. "It is extremely disappointing to see this knee-jerk reinstatement of measures that have proven ineffective over the last three years."