India, China Resume Direct Flights As Diplomatic Ties Improve

India and China have resumed direct passenger flights after nearly five years, signalling a gradual improvement in relations between the two Asian giants.

An IndiGo aircraft, flight 6E 1703, arrived in Guangzhou from Kolkata on Monday carrying about 180 passengers — marking the first direct connection since flights were suspended in early 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic and subsequent border tensions.

The flight relaunch follows a steady thaw in diplomatic ties that had been strained since a deadly border clash in the Himalayan region. Both countries have since taken steps to rebuild confidence, including a landmark border patrol agreement reached last year.

According to India’s government, the resumption of flights is aimed at enhancing people-to-people contact and supporting the gradual normalisation of bilateral exchanges.

In a symbolic gesture, staff at the Kolkata airport lit traditional brass lamps on Sunday evening as passengers checked in for the historic flight.

At the terminal, Qin Yong, a senior Chinese consular official, described the moment as “a very important day for the India-China relationship.”

Passengers also expressed relief that travel times between the two countries would now be shorter. Business traveller Krishna Goyal told local media that the direct connection would strengthen trade and economic relations, noting that travellers previously had to make two or three flight connections, often transiting through Singapore.

The revival of air links is one of several diplomatic moves this year pointing to improved ties. In August, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in China — his first visit to the country in seven years. A month earlier, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi had travelled to New Delhi for talks on border management and de-escalation.

India also resumed issuing tourist visas for Chinese nationals in July.

Before the pandemic, India and China operated around 2,588 scheduled flights in 2019, according to travel data firm OAG.

The air connection is set to expand further, with China Eastern Airlines announcing plans to launch a Shanghai–Delhi route from 9 November, operating three times weekly, the Chinese embassy in India confirmed on X.