Parata Airlines is to open a Yangyang-Shanghai route in December 2026. Yangyang Airport (YNY) has cut off international flights since 2023, but this will change as international scheduled routes are being planned. Parata Airlines has confirmed international flight services between Yangyang International Airport and Shanghai Pudong International Airport (PVG).
Yangyang International Airport Recognition
The Yangyang-Shanghai route is set to open and will mark an early step in the airport’s return to international operations. Initial flight dates are yet to be confirmed, but are expected in December, with the Airbus A320 slated as the first aircraft to operate the route.
China and South Korea’s flight connections have been getting stronger over the years, though Yangyang itself has so far had no direct passenger flights to mainland China. This year, agreements were reached to expand weekly flight rights between the two countries for the first time in seven years, boosting Korean airlines’ presence in the Chinese market as part of an ever-growing process.
In late September 2025, Parata Airlines launched a domestic route for Yangyang and Jeju. This marked the start of Yangyang’s recognition amid growing demand for air travel. Since then, Parata Airlines has operated the Yangyang-Jeju route, which has helped establish Yangyang as a space open for domestic, and later international, flights.
By 2026, expectations were growing for the revitalisation of Yangyang International Airport, with the Yangyang-Shanghai route targeted for its inaugural flight.
International Flights For Parata Airlines
According to Cookie News, the possibility of expanding international flights from Yangyang is also open in the future. There is a plan to fly irregular flights to Japan or Southeast Asia after confirming the demand and business feasibility while operating the Shanghai route.
Parata Airlines is not the only airline preparing to bolster the Yangyang-Shanghai route; China Eastern Airlines is also promoting the idea of opening a route connecting the two. This will be the groundwork for the improvement of East Asian aviation networks.
A professor at Korean Aviation University, Kim Kwang-ok, says that:
As Shanghai is a market with a large demand for aviation and tourism, this flight will be a test for Yangyang Airport to recover its function as an international airport and establish itself as a tourist gateway.
The Yangyang-Shanghai route will be significant not only to the expansion of Parata Airlines’ China route, but also to the resumption of Yangyang Airport’s international flights. The proportion of Chinese routes is expected to increase gradually, as well as the number of operating routes worldwide.
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