China's civil aviation sector is steadily scaling up its international network, with 50 new international routes launched in June alone.
Last Thursday, China Eastern Airlines flight MU255 departed from Shanghai Pudong International Airport on its inaugural journey to Zurich, Switzerland, marking the carrier's second Swiss route following the Shanghai-Geneva service launched in 2025.
"Between June and July this year, we will launch routes from Shanghai Pudong to Adelaide, Stockholm, Tbilisi, Dublin, and Cheongju in South Korea. Work to launch a new route to Mumbai is also underway," said Shi Yanyan, senior manager of the Network Revenue Department of China Eastern Airlines.
In addition, Air China have inaugurated services from Beijing Daxing International Airport to Germany's Frankfurt and Italy's Milan over the past two months.
On Saturday, Hainan Airlines incorporated a new route linking the tropical island province's capital city of Haikou, southwest China's Chongqing Municipality, and Spain's capital of Madrid into its China-Europe network.
Meanwhile, China Southern Airlines has opened or resumed routes including Guangzhou-Urumqi-Frankfurt and Urumqi-Bishkek, integrating more airports into China's global aviation map.
"The airplane was awesome. The airport [was also awesome] when we landed. Everyone has been amazing here in China. So, amazing country, amazing people," said Edward Guerra Ⅲ, an American tourist.
"Everything has been very convenient, like the public transportation. Everything has been great. We've been getting on the light rail," said Edward Guerra Junior.
With both direct and connecting flights, China has built a multi-tiered route network spanning 86 countries.
During the summer-autumn 2026 aviation season, China's international flights are expected to increase steadily, with 191 airlines scheduled to operate 21,047 international flights per week, an increase of 1.8 percent year on year.
Chinese airlines launch new routes to expand international network
