India popular with Chinese tourists

State-owned China Eastern Airlines will resume its Shanghai-Delhi flights starting November 9, the airline’s website announced on Saturday, October 18. China and India are resuming direct air links amid a diplomatic thaw after a five-year freeze.

The flights will operate three times a week, on Wednesdays, Saturdays, and Sundays, the airline’s online ticket sales platform announced.

The Indian Ministry of External Affairs announced earlier this month that commercial flights between the two neighboring countries would resume after a five-year freeze.

This announcement follows Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s first visit to China in more than seven years, for a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization regional security bloc.

The two sides discussed ways to improve trade relations, while Modi expressed concern about India’s growing bilateral trade deficit.

The Indian and Chinese foreign ministries did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the Shanghai-Delhi flights.

IndiGo, India’s largest airline, had announced the launch of daily non-stop flights between Kolkata and Guangzhou.

The state-backed Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport had said at the time of IndiGo’s announcement that it would encourage airlines to open more direct routes, particularly between Guangzhou and Delhi.

The two countries suspended direct air services in 2020 after deadly military clashes along their Himalayan border led to a prolonged military standoff.