Canada-China Flights Set to Increase as Restrictions Ease

The Canadian authorities has lifted pandemic-era caps on flights between Canada and China, paving the way in which for a rise in service between the 2 international locations. A number of airways have already introduced service will increase and resumptions with extra anticipated to return.

Background: Canada’s China Flight Caps

In 2021, the Canadian Minister of Transportation issued an order that restricted the variety of flights operated by Chinese language carriers to Canada to 2 scheduled round-trip passenger flights per week. The order was changed with a brand new one in 2022, elevating the cap to 6 weekly frequencies. These orders additionally prohibited continuous flights between Canada and Beijing.

Final week, the federal government rescinded the order, thereby eradicating these frequency restrictions. Till this transfer, the six frequencies had been allotted as follows (with one weekly flight per route and airline):

• Air China: Beijing–Capital – Vancouver (with a technical cease in Shenyang to keep away from the prohibition on direct flights between Canada and Beijing)
• China Japanese Airways: Shanghai–Pudong – Toronto
• China Southern Airways: Guangzhou – Toronto
• Hainan Airways: Shenzhen – Vancouver
• Sichuan Airways: Chengdu–Tianfu – Vancouver
• XiamenAir: Xiamen – Vancouver

Previous to the COVID-19 pandemic, Chinese language carriers operated as much as 76 roundtrips between the 2 international locations. In the meantime, Air Canada – the one Canadian service flying to China – flew as much as 35 weekly frequencies.

Chinese language Airways Bolster Providers to Canada

Following the most recent announcement eradicating the frequency restrictions, Chinese language airways have begun asserting will increase of their providers to Canada.

Air China plans to renew continuous Boeing 777-300ER service between Beijing Capital Worldwide Airport and Vancouver Worldwide Airport on November 8, 2024. The flight will exchange the prevailing service that operates by way of Shenyang. Beginning on November 18, 2024, the frequency will enhance to 3 flights per week.

China Eastern will enhance its once-weekly roundtrip between Shanghai Pudong Worldwide Airport and Toronto Pearson Worldwide Airport to 4 flights per week beginning on November 18, 2024. The airline makes use of its Boeing 777-300ER plane on this route.

A China Japanese Airways Boeing 777-300ER (Picture: AirlineGeeks | William Derrickson)

Bulletins from different Chinese language airways are anticipated to comply with within the coming weeks and months. This might embrace the resumption of routes that ended in the course of the pandemic, akin to Beijing Capital Airways’ service from Hangzhou and Qingdao to Vancouver and China Southern Airways’ flights between Guangzhou and Vancouver.

Air Canada Ramps Up China Flights

Air Canada has additionally introduced will increase to its flights between Canada and China. The Canadian flag service’s solely present service to China is a route between Vancouver and Shanghai–Pudong that operates 4 occasions per week with a Boeing 787-9. The airline will now function this route day by day beginning on December 7, 2024.

In the meantime, the service has additionally introduced a resumption of flights between Vancouver and Beijing–Capital. Each day flights are set to start on January 15, 2025 with Air Canada’s Boeing 787 Dreamliner plane.

Andrew is a lifelong lover of aviation and journey. He has flown everywhere in the world and is fascinated by the workings of the air journey business. As a personal pilot and glider pilot who has labored with airways, airports and different business stakeholders, he’s all the time excited to share his ardour for aviation with others. Along with being a author, he additionally hosts Flying Smarter, an academic journey podcast that explores the complicated world of air journey to assist listeners develop into better-informed and savvier vacationers.

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