Air Koryo plane lands in China, first commercial North Korean flight in 3 years
- Flight from Pyongyang arrived in Beijing on Tuesday morning and is scheduled to return in the afternoon, according to Yonhap
- Chinese foreign ministry said the carrier’s scheduled flight plans between the two countries were approved for summer-autumn
Flight JS151, operated by North Korean state carrier Air Koryo, arrived in the Chinese capital at 9.17am, according to flight data on the Beijing Capital International Airport website.
It followed a Chinese foreign ministry announcement on Monday that China had approved scheduled flight plans between the neighbouring countries after Beijing eased its pandemic restrictions earlier this year.
“During the summer-autumn flight season transition in 2023, China approved Air Koryo’s scheduled flight plans from Pyongyang to Beijing to Pyongyang and other passenger routes requested by the airline according to procedures,” ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said.
It is not known who was aboard the North Korean flight. Flightradar24 data showed that it was a Tu-204 – a Russian-designed passenger aircraft with capacity for 210 passengers.
South Korean news agency Yonhap reported that the plane was scheduled to leave Beijing again at 1.05pm on Tuesday, prompting speculation that it could be collecting North Korean citizens who were unable to return to the country during the pandemic.
Yonhap said it was possible the morning flight was transporting North Korean officials to Beijing, or that the return flight could take embassy officials in China back to Pyongyang.
Agence France-Presse reported earlier that the flight had been scheduled for Monday but was cancelled for unspecified reasons.