by Lacey Pfalz
Last updated: 9:20 AM ET, Tue August 15, 2023
Flights between China and the United States by Chinese carriers will double, according to a new statement made by the Biden Administration last week and supported by the U.S. Department of Transportation.
The move will begin on September 1, increasing weekly round-trips to eighteen in total, then increasing that to 24 per week beginning October 29. Currently, there are only 12 weekly round-trip flights to China.
According to Reuters, China also agrees to do the same for American carriers in China as the country lifts its pandemic-era travel restrictions, allowing group tours for travelers from more countries, including the United States.
Air China has already expressed interest in adding a new weekly flight between Los Angeles and Beijing. United Airlines will also expand its service, returning to Beijing and beginning daily service to Shanghai.
The USDOT commented in its approval order on Friday, August 11: “Our overriding goal is an improved environment wherein the carriers of both parties are able to exercise fully their bilateral rights to maintain a competitive balance and fair and equal opportunity among U.S. and Chinese air carriers.”
While 24 weekly flights between the two countries, who have a recent history of economic competition, is double the number of what it is now, it’s still only a small sum of the once-150 round-trip flights that flew regularly before the pandemic began in 2020.
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