The number of air transportation from Russia to China and back in January-May 2023 increasedmore than tenfold compared to last year: in less than half a year, the aircraft carried 7,500 and 78,800 passengers, respectively.
Due to the pandemic, China , unlike many other countries, remained closed until the beginning of 2023 : the authorities allowed tourists to enter only from January 8, two weeks before the Chinese New Year. Outbound tourism opened a month later, immediately after that Moscow and Beijing renewed an agreement on visa-free group travel. The first travelers from China arrived in the Russian capital on February 23 – they were greeted at Sheremetyevo with traditional Russian dances and a loaf .
In summer , five Russian airlines fly to China on 13 routes – IrAero, Aeroflot, Aurora, S7 Airlines and Yakutia. Each of them makes 32 flights weekly. From China to Russia – 45 flights per week from seven air carriers on ten routes: from Beijing to Moscow and St. Petersburg, from Chengdu to Moscow and St. Petersburg, from Qingdao to Moscow, from Shanghai to Moscow and St. Petersburg, from Guangzhou, Xi’an and Chongqing to Moscow. Since July 5, the Chita-Hailar (Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region)-Beijing flight of Air China Limited has also appeared.
