Kazakhstan’s SCAT Airlines will launch a twice-weekly Boeing 737-MAX 9 service between Prague and Sanya, Hainan, in March 2026, the carrier confirmed on 26 November. Although the route starts next year, the announcement is already shaping corporate travel plans for 2026 budgeting.
Today, most passengers and high-value belly freight between Czechia and southern China route via Almaty, Istanbul or Dubai. The new non-stop cuts journey times by up to five hours each way and – crucially – avoids mainland Chinese transit-visa requirements that have stranded travellers in visa queues since Beijing reinstated controls earlier this year.
![SCAT Airlines to link Prague with China’s Hainan Island, slashing transit-visa headaches]()
For Czech exporters the benefits are tangible. Automotive and electronics suppliers with plants in Guangdong often need to ship urgent moulds and spare parts; SCAT’s three-tonne cargo allocation per flight should ease current bottlenecks. Tour operators also welcome the link, predicting that Sanya’s beach resorts will attract Czech incentive groups seeking a winter alternative to Phuket and the Canary Islands.
From a mobility-compliance angle, companies must remember that Hainan operates a separate 30-day visa-on-arrival scheme for many EU nationals, including Czechs. Staff connecting onward to the mainland, however, will still need the appropriate Chinese visa. Travel managers should update trip-approval workflows to reflect the new options once schedules are loaded into GDS in January.
Prague Airport, which handled a record 14 million passengers in 2024, says the route underscores its strategy of luring non-EU carriers to diversify long-haul capacity after the collapse of Czech Airlines’ Asia network during the pandemic.
Today, most passengers and high-value belly freight between Czechia and southern China route via Almaty, Istanbul or Dubai. The new non-stop cuts journey times by up to five hours each way and – crucially – avoids mainland Chinese transit-visa requirements that have stranded travellers in visa queues since Beijing reinstated controls earlier this year.
For Czech exporters the benefits are tangible. Automotive and electronics suppliers with plants in Guangdong often need to ship urgent moulds and spare parts; SCAT’s three-tonne cargo allocation per flight should ease current bottlenecks. Tour operators also welcome the link, predicting that Sanya’s beach resorts will attract Czech incentive groups seeking a winter alternative to Phuket and the Canary Islands.
From a mobility-compliance angle, companies must remember that Hainan operates a separate 30-day visa-on-arrival scheme for many EU nationals, including Czechs. Staff connecting onward to the mainland, however, will still need the appropriate Chinese visa. Travel managers should update trip-approval workflows to reflect the new options once schedules are loaded into GDS in January.
Prague Airport, which handled a record 14 million passengers in 2024, says the route underscores its strategy of luring non-EU carriers to diversify long-haul capacity after the collapse of Czech Airlines’ Asia network during the pandemic.
