China Eases Covid-19 Suspension for International Flights

In June, China reduced quarantine times for inbound travellers by half, its biggest shift in a Covid-19 policy that has left the world’s second-largest economy isolated as it continues to try and eliminate the virus.

In April last year, the authority said in a statement that inbound flights carrying 5 infected passengers would be banned for 2 weeks from the fourth week of arrival or control their load factor, and those flights with 10 infected arrivals would be banned for 4 weeks from the fourth week of arrival.

Zero-COVID Strategy

China is the only major economy still holding fast to a zero-Covid strategy with snap lockdowns and long quarantines.

“Although China’s aviation rebounded quickly at first due to its large domestic market, the government’s zero-COVID policy saw sweeping lockdowns introduced after the outbreak of the Omicron variant.”

The country’s borders have also remained largely closed since early 2020, halting international tourism. Hundreds of thousands of Chinese students and workers abroad have been left stranded and complained about paying exorbitant prices to buy tickets back home, with the limited number of flights entering the country routinely suspended.

In April, the total number of daily flights operated domestically stood at about 2,000 to 3,000, less than one-quarter of the flights recorded in the same month the year prior. However, as major hubs begin opening up, numbers are back up to over 8,000.

Hong Kong suspended a similar flight-ban system last month, raising hopes the financial hub will lift travel curbs.

China’s easing of rules will surely help push that figure higher still.