India and China resume direct flights as relations warm

On Monday, IndiGo flight 6E 1703 from Kolkata arrived in Guangzhou, carrying about 180 passengers — the first direct service between the two countries since early 2020.

Flights had been halted at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic and remained suspended following a deadly confrontation along the disputed Himalayan border that deeply strained ties. Now, with both nations gradually rebuilding trust, the skies between them are open again.

The Indian government said the restored routes would “enhance people-to-people contact” and support “the gradual normalization of bilateral exchanges.” The restart comes amid a series of recent diplomatic gestures aimed at defusing tensions and expanding engagement.

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited China in August — his first trip there in seven years — where he met President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit. Earlier, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi had traveled to New Delhi for talks focused on “de-escalation, delimitation and boundary affairs.” In July, India also resumed issuing visas to Chinese tourists.

Before the pandemic, India and China operated nearly 2,600 scheduled flights annually, according to travel data firm OAG.

At Kolkata airport on Sunday night, IndiGo staff lit brass oil lamps to celebrate the return of direct flights. Qin Yong, a senior Chinese consular official, described the moment as “a very important day for the India-China relationship.”

Passengers welcomed the change, noting the convenience of traveling without multiple stopovers. Business traveler Krishna Goyal told ANI that the direct services would strengthen trade and cooperation, recalling how travelers previously switched flights in Singapore or elsewhere to reach China.

China Eastern Airlines will follow suit next month, launching a thrice-weekly service between Shanghai and Delhi starting November 9, the Chinese embassy in India confirmed on social media.

Additional reporting by Neyaz Farooquee in Delhi