Three airlines from China have announced their plans to resume flight routes to the Maldives.
Maldives Airports Company Limited (MACL) revealed that Hong Kong Airlines, China Eastern Airlines, and Beijing Capital have announced their plans to resume flights once more. Meanwhile, Hong Kong Airlines has already acquired flight slots from January 1 through the end of March. The airline is expected to operate three weekly flights.
Beijing Capital will operate four charter flights from January 18 to February 22. The airline is expected to fly an average of 300 passengers per flight.
Before the Covid-19 pandemic outbreak in 2020, China maintained the top spot as the strongest source market for the Maldives. Following the pandemic’s global outbreak, China grounded its aviation operations. This dropped Chinese arrivals to the Maldives, which was significantly reflected in the overall tourist arrival numbers. In 2019, the Ministry of Tourism reported an annual total of 280,000 Chinese arrivals, which was 17 percent of the total tourists visiting that year.
Minister of Tourism Dr. Abdulla Mausoom estimated a 10 percent increase in annual tourist arrivals when China reopens its global aviation operations.
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