Air India on Monday announced the resumption of its non-stop flights between Delhi, India and Shanghai, effective on February 1, 2026, marking its return to Chinese mainland after nearly six years of suspension.
It is a second Indian carrier resuming their services to Chinese mainland after IndiGo.
Shanghai is the 48th international destination to be served by Air India group, which continues to carry more passengers internationally than any other airline in India, according to a release posted on its official website on Monday.
Air India said it will operate four times a week between Delhi and Shanghai using its twin-aisle Boeing 787-8 aircraft, featuring 18 flat beds in business class and 238 seats in economy class.
The carrier said the reinstatement of its services to Shanghai follows recent India-China diplomatic agreements that restored air links paused in early 2020. Air India first launched non-stop services to Chinese mainland in October 2000.
Campbell Wilson, CEO & managing director with Air India, said the resumption of the Delhi-Shanghai services is more than a route launch. It is a bridge between two great, ancient civilizations and modern economic powerhouses.
On November 11, IndiGo flight 6E 1701 arrived in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province from Delhi, marking the carrier’s second route to China in the past month.
This follows the resumption of its Kolkata-Guangzhou services on October 26.
IndiGo is the first Indian airline to restart direct flights to the Chinese mainland after a five-year hiatus.
At 1:02 pm on November 9, China Eastern Airlines flight MU563, carrying 248 passengers, departed from the Shanghai Pudong International Airport bound for Delhi.
China Eastern said that it plans to increase flight frequency based on market feedback and to resume the Kunming-Kolkata route and to launch a new Shanghai Pudong-Mumbai route, further expanding air links between the two countries.
IndiGo has demonstrated its ability to launch new routes rapidly, as seen with the previous Kolkata-Guangzhou service, said Pieter Elbers, CEO of IndiGo, in an exclusive interview with the Global Times in Guangzhou on November 11.
"Clearly we have ambitions to further grow and further develop since one-third of the world’s population is living in India and China together, for we have more direct air connectivity between these two huge populations," he said.
He also expressed his ambition for the Chinese market, revealing that the airline is evaluating operations from additional Indian cities to more Chinese destinations.
On October 9, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said that China and India would resume direct flights before the end of this month.
This is the latest result as the two sides earnestly implement the important consensus reached between the leaders of the two countries during their meeting in Tianjin on August 31, according to Guo.
It is also a positive move to facilitate friendly exchanges between the Chinese and Indian peoples, totaling more than 2.8 billion, Guo added.
原文地址：http://en.people.cn/n3/2025/1118/c90000-20391771.html