China's Sky Routes Not Easily Opened... Will Things Change After the Two Sessions?

[Asia Economy Reporter Yu Je-hoon] The air routes to China, which had been firmly closed due to the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), are still not reopening easily. The national airlines' plans to resume flights to China next month have ultimately been postponed due to the Chinese aviation authorities' 'one airline, one route' restriction.

According to the aviation industry on the 22nd, Korean Air and Asiana Airlines were scheduled to resume 6 and 11 China routes respectively from next month, but have delayed these plans. As a result, the non-operation period for the China routes each airline was planning to resume has been extended until the 30th of next month.

Originally, Korean Air and Asiana Airlines had been pushing to resume international flights centered on China and other countries from next month as the spread of COVID-19 slowed in major countries. Although demand is not sufficient immediately, the intention was to take proactive measures in anticipation of future demand recovery.

In particular, due to China's characteristic as the 'world's factory,' there was considerable expectation that China routes, with ample business demand, could be a much-needed relief for the aviation industry, which has been pushed to the brink by COVID-19. In the United States, Delta Air Lines and United Airlines have also been exploring the possibility of resuming China routes next month. An industry insider said, "Even before the business rapid passage system was applied, many passengers boarded China routes for business reasons despite enduring the mandatory 14-day quarantine," adding, "With the rapid passage system introduced on the 1st and the restoration of route networks, demand will not be insignificant."

However, these plans have been disrupted as the Chinese aviation authorities have not lifted the current 'one airline, one route' restriction. Currently, Korean Air and Asiana Airlines maintain only the Incheon~Shenzhen and Incheon~Changchun routes respectively under this restriction. The state-run Global Times also recently cited a Chinese Civil Aviation Administration official, reporting that "no definite answer has been received regarding the resumption of international flights," and that "Chinese airlines will continue to follow strict aviation policies in June."

Nevertheless, the industry is hopeful for policy changes following the Two Sessions (Lianghui, referring to the National People's Congress and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference), China's largest political event, which started yesterday and will last for a week. Since Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to declare a 'victory in the people's war against COVID-19' during this event, there is reason to believe that restrictions such as the 'one airline, one route' regulation may be lifted to promote full-scale economic recovery.

An official from a national airline stated, "Considering that the 'one airline, one route' restriction may not be lifted in June, we have not been accepting reservations even after announcing plans to resume China routes," adding, "We are watching to see if related controls will be eased after the Two Sessions."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.