Air China confirmed on Saturday, 14 March 2026, that it will restart a limited commercial air link between Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK) and Pyongyang’s Sunan International Airport (FNJ) from 30 March. According to the airline’s reservation system, CA121/122 will operate every Monday until 18 May before dropping to two Monday rotations in June. The announcement comes only days after cross-border passenger trains resumed between the two capitals, marking the most significant relaxation of North Korea’s pandemic-era border controls since early 2020. Pyongyang sealed its land, sea and air frontiers at the onset of COVID-19 and expelled tourists and most diplomats. Limited charter flights and humanitarian cargo traffic were permitted from late 2022, but scheduled passenger services remained suspended. For China, the route restoration is diplomatically and commercially important. North Korea is a sanctioned but still strategic neighbour, and Chinese business executives, aid workers and diplomats rely on direct connectivity. The move also signals cautious confidence in regional public-health conditions and could pave the way for other Chinese carriers such as China Eastern or low-cost Air Koryo code-shares to restart secondary services from Shenyang or Shanghai. Corporate mobility managers should note that seats are scarce and fares are expected to be high during the initial phase. Travellers must still secure North Korean entry approvals, which can take several weeks.
![Air China revives Beijing–Pyongyang passenger flights after four-year hiatus]()
VisaHQ’s online platform can streamline those formalities for both legs of the journey. The service provides up-to-date requirements, digital applications and courier support for Chinese visas as well as guidance on the DPRK’s invitation and permit process, helping companies and individual travellers cut lead times. More information is available at https://www.visahq.com/china/
Inbound passengers transiting Beijing must hold valid Chinese visas or utilise China’s 24-hour visa-free transit where eligible. Companies with engineering, mining or infrastructure projects in the DPRK should begin re-activating travel risk protocols and review insurance coverage, as medical evacuation options remain limited. More broadly, the reopening underscores China’s incremental normalisation of regional air corridors. Analysts say Beijing may leverage air links to press for economic cooperation zones along the border, while Pyongyang gains a politically safe tourism channel that avoids dependence on Russian charter flights introduced last year.
VisaHQ’s online platform can streamline those formalities for both legs of the journey. The service provides up-to-date requirements, digital applications and courier support for Chinese visas as well as guidance on the DPRK’s invitation and permit process, helping companies and individual travellers cut lead times. More information is available at https://www.visahq.com/china/
Inbound passengers transiting Beijing must hold valid Chinese visas or utilise China’s 24-hour visa-free transit where eligible. Companies with engineering, mining or infrastructure projects in the DPRK should begin re-activating travel risk protocols and review insurance coverage, as medical evacuation options remain limited. More broadly, the reopening underscores China’s incremental normalisation of regional air corridors. Analysts say Beijing may leverage air links to press for economic cooperation zones along the border, while Pyongyang gains a politically safe tourism channel that avoids dependence on Russian charter flights introduced last year.
