China Southern Airlines has launched a new route between Beijing and Macau, with the first flight taking off on Monday as part of plans to add 17 international routes to its schedule.
According to a report by Reuters, the new routes were announced at an event in Beijing and will include destinations such as Amsterdam, London, Doha, Riyadh and Tehran.
Executives of China Southern Airlines said they hoped to launch all of the new routes by 26 October, pushing its route network to 85% of 2019 levels from the current 80%.
International air travel out of China has remained sluggish post-COVID, with China Southern Airlines last week reporting a US$567 million loss in 2023 on weak consumer spending power, jet fuel costs, supply chain problems and the depreciation of the yuan, Reuters said.
Macau International Airport Company Limited (CAM) said in January it expects passenger traffic at Macau International Airport to increase by between 10% and 15% year-on-year in 2024, having seen 5.15 million passenger movements last year.
