Aviation officials from South Korea and China have finalized their first flight expansion deal in seven years, marking another positive development in the relationship between the neighboring countries, according to Seoul’s transport ministry announced Thursday.
During bilateral aviation discussions held in Seoul from May 27 to 28, both nations agreed to boost passenger flight allowances by 56 weekly flights, bringing the total from 608 to 664. Cargo flight permissions will also grow by 14 weekly flights, increasing from 54 to 68, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport reported.
According to ministry officials, the expanded flight rights will facilitate additional service on popular travel corridors like Incheon to Shanghai and Incheon to Guangzhou, where current flight allocations have reached capacity for both countries.
The agreement will also open new pathway options connecting South Korea’s smaller airports, including those in Busan and Cheongju, to 10 destinations across China including Guangzhou, Chengdu, Shenzhen, Chongqing and Xian, ministry representatives stated.
Travel between the two countries has already rebounded strongly, with first-quarter passenger numbers hitting approximately 4.39 million – surpassing the pre-pandemic figure of 4.14 million, the ministry’s data shows.
Lee So-young, who serves as the ministry’s aviation policy chief, expressed optimism about the timing of the flight expansion coinciding with increased bilateral exchanges.
“We expect this agreement to help promote visits to South Korea by Chinese tourists, improve convenience for our citizens travelling to China and for import-export companies, and contribute to revitalising the economy by further boosting Korean airlines’ entry into the Chinese market,” Lee said.
The ministry indicated it will distribute the additional flight rights to South Korean carriers during the latter half of this year.
