Chinese airlines carried 34 percent more international passengers in the first quarter of this year, the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) said, highlighting an expanding international network driven by demand.
A Chinese expert said that the growth showed the fast recovery of the Chinese aviation industry, and the efforts of China are pushing further personnel exchanges, triggered by favorable policies released by the Chinese government.
A total of 18.925 million international passengers were carried by Chinese airlines in the first quarter, an increase of 34 percent year-on-year and 4.5 percent over the same period in 2019, Shang Kejia, an official of the CAAC, said at the agency’s monthly press conference.
Passenger travel from China to Africa grew 241 percent, followed by Central Asia at 233 percent and West Asia at 91 percent.
There are now 28 Chinese airlines and 100 foreign airlines operating international passenger routes in China, with flights to 78 countries in total, a net increase of four countries compared with 2019.
“The international route network continued to expand in the first quarter of this year, and the number of international flights and passengers further increased,” Shang said.
The data show a rapid recovery and structural optimization of the international aviation market in China, for China’s international aviation market has transformed from restorative growth to structural upgrading, Luo Chengtao, a chief analyst of industry information provider VariFlight.
