As the summer travel season approaches, China’s major airlines are significantly expanding their international and regional networks by launching new routes and increasing flight frequencies to meet rising travel demand. China Southern Airlines is at the forefront of this expansion, with several new direct international routes set to launch in late June and early July. Starting on June 16, the airline will begin operating a twice-weekly direct flight from Beijing to Dushanbe, the capital of Tajikistan. On June 25, it will launch a three-times-weekly direct service between Guangzhou and Almaty, Kazakhstan, while on June 30, a new route connecting Guangzhou with Tashkent, Uzbekistan, will commence with three weekly round trips. Additionally, from July 1, Spring Airlines will open a twice-weekly direct service between Harbin and Vladivostok, Russia.
Beyond the new routes, China Southern is also increasing frequencies on several popular international routes. The Urumqi–Tbilisi route will see flights rise from four to seven round trips per week starting June 1, while the Urumqi–Yerevan route will increase from two to three weekly flights beginning June 11. Meanwhile, the Guangzhou–Brisbane route will expand from five to seven weekly flights starting June 12. By the end of this expansion, China Southern will operate a total of 150 international and regional routes, with around 2,000 scheduled weekly flights, the airline announced.
China Eastern Airlines is also making moves to strengthen its international presence. On June 24, it will launch a direct flight from Xi’an to Istanbul, Turkey—its second direct route to the country after the existing Shanghai–Istanbul service—marking a new step in aviation cooperation between China and Turkey.
Air China is increasing frequencies on key routes to accommodate higher demand. Starting June 20, the number of daily flights between Chengdu and Singapore will double from one to two, and from June 30, daily flights between Chengdu and Tokyo will be restored.
Meanwhile, Spring Airlines is expanding its regional offerings by launching a new daily round-trip route from Chengdu to Phnom Penh, Cambodia, starting June 25, and resuming a daily service between Chengdu Tianfu and Bangkok Suvarnabhumi, Thailand, from June 27.
These developments highlight the growing demand for international travel across Asia-Pacific as the summer peak approaches, with Chinese airlines actively broadening their global reach and enhancing connectivity to key destinations worldwide.
