China’s Civil Aviation Administration (CAAC) confirmed on 4 November 2025 that the 2025/26 IATA winter timetable—effective 26 October 2025 to 28 March 2026—will feature 119,500 weekly flights operated by 210 airlines, a 1.3 percent year-on-year increase. The headline figure masks a sharper 10.8 percent jump in international services to 21,427 weekly frequencies linking China with 83 countries.
Of those, 134 carriers (28 Chinese, 106 foreign) will run 15,992 weekly passenger flights—5.6 percent more than last winter. Cargo capacity also edges up 1.7 percent to 5,435 weekly all-cargo flights, supporting supply-chain resilience for electronics and pharma exporters.
![Winter 2025/26 Flight Schedule Adds 10.8 % More International Frequencies, Says CAAC]()
Domestic capacity remains broadly flat at 98,000 weekly flights, but 39 airlines are opening 586 new point-to-point routes—many linking tier-three leisure destinations such as Altay, Xishuangbanna and Dali with coastal economic centres. The diversification aligns with Beijing’s ‘tourism-plus’ strategy and disperses traffic away from already congested hubs.
For global mobility teams the bigger story is the restoration of non-stop links: carriers have re-launched, among others, Beijing-Abu Dhabi (Air China), Shenzhen-Seattle (Hainan Airlines) and Chengdu-Frankfurt (Sichuan Airlines). More frequencies mean greater seat availability and pricing stability for assignees and visiting executives.
Travel managers should update preferred-carrier agreements and alert travellers to possible schedule shifts as airlines recalibrate fleets for winter demand. The CAAC will monitor OTP (on-time performance) and may cap slots at under-performing airports if congestion worsens during Lunar New Year peaks.
Of those, 134 carriers (28 Chinese, 106 foreign) will run 15,992 weekly passenger flights—5.6 percent more than last winter. Cargo capacity also edges up 1.7 percent to 5,435 weekly all-cargo flights, supporting supply-chain resilience for electronics and pharma exporters.
Domestic capacity remains broadly flat at 98,000 weekly flights, but 39 airlines are opening 586 new point-to-point routes—many linking tier-three leisure destinations such as Altay, Xishuangbanna and Dali with coastal economic centres. The diversification aligns with Beijing’s ‘tourism-plus’ strategy and disperses traffic away from already congested hubs.
For global mobility teams the bigger story is the restoration of non-stop links: carriers have re-launched, among others, Beijing-Abu Dhabi (Air China), Shenzhen-Seattle (Hainan Airlines) and Chengdu-Frankfurt (Sichuan Airlines). More frequencies mean greater seat availability and pricing stability for assignees and visiting executives.
Travel managers should update preferred-carrier agreements and alert travellers to possible schedule shifts as airlines recalibrate fleets for winter demand. The CAAC will monitor OTP (on-time performance) and may cap slots at under-performing airports if congestion worsens during Lunar New Year peaks.
