US and China to double weekly flights, handing lifeline to grounded carriers facing industry’s worst travel slump

Air China, China Eastern Airlines, China Southern Airlines and Xiamen Airlines will be allowed to double their weekly US services to eight round trips

A day earlier, the Civil Aviation Authority of China (CAAC) gave the green light for Delta Air Lines and United Airlines to increase their weekly China services to two round-trip flights

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A China Southern Airlines flight taking off at Beijing’s Daxing International Airport on September 25, 2019. Photo: XInhua

Published: 2:17pm, 19 Aug 2020Updated: 10:51pm, 19 Aug 2020

China and the United States will double the number of flights between them later this month, resuming services on some of the world’s most lucrative routes to offer a lifeline to half a dozen grounded airlines mired in the industry’s worst slump.

Air China, China Eastern Airlines, China Southern Airlines and Xiamen Airlines will be allowed to each double their weekly US services to two round trips, the US Department of Transportation said overnight. A day earlier, the Civil Aviation Authority of China (CAAC) gave the green light for Delta Air Lines and United Airlines to increase their weekly China services to two round-trip flights.

The gradual resumption in air service, even as China and the US are headed in opposite directions in their coronavirus cases, offers the first breather for a global aviation industry poised for a 50 per cent decline in 2020 sales, according to a June forecast by the International Air Transport Association (Iata). Chinese airlines, which lost more than 70 billion yuan (US$10.1 billion) in the first half, have launched a variety of unlimited “fly at will” flight packages, as competition steps up for domestic passengers following China’s gradual release from coronavirus lockdown.

“Most air passengers are Chinese returning from overseas as the pandemic is out of control in these countries,” said Qi Qi, an associate professor at Guangzhou Civil Aviation College. “Business and tourism demand in international routes have not resumed yet, which will not come until the pandemic comes under control domestically and overseas. In the short term, it’s basically impossible to recover all international flights, including the flights between China and the US.”

A helicopter taking off as planes are grounded at Hong Kong International Airport on June 30, 2020. Photo: Felix Wong

Delta Air Lines will start a Detroit-Shanghai service and a Seattle-Shanghai flight – both transiting in Seoul – from August 24 on a weekly basis.

“From this week, customers can book the tickets for the two newly added flights from the official website of Delta Air Lines,” the Atlanta-based carrier said in reply to the South China Morning Post.