US airlines oppose China's bid to add more flights
The head of industry group Airlines for America said on Thursday that US carriers oppose adding more direct flights from China to the United States even as Chinese President Xi Jinping raised the idea.
A senior official from the US airline industry has stated that American carriers oppose Chinese President Xi Jinping's proposal to increase direct flights between the two nations. Chris Sununu, head of the industry group Airlines for America, criticized the imbalance in flight access, noting that Chinese carriers are currently allowed eight flights over Russia while US airlines are not.
He argued against making the situation worse for American airlines. Currently, the US and China each operate around 50 round-trip flights per week, down from over 150 before the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions. Xi suggested during a Washington event that the two sides might boost direct flights to boost two-way travel and trade. However, Sununu emphasized the unfairness of granting Chinese airlines an additional advantage.
The US banned Russian flights from its airspace following Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, prompting Russia to block US carriers from overflying the country. While the US has not banned other nations from using Russian airspace, a 2023 deal with China limited additional flights to those that didn't require overflying Russia. The US proposed a ban on Chinese airlines flying over Russia in October 2025, citing unfair flight time advantages for American airlines, but the plan was ultimately abandoned prior to trade talks with China.
Written by urgent.news from The Jakarta Post's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
This story
This is one outlet's version. Read the fullest account.
- US airlines oppose China’s bid to add more flights freemalaysiatoday.com
- US airlines oppose China's bid to add more flights nst.com.my
- US airlines oppose China’s bid to add more flights investing.com
