Bullets:
North American and European airlines are restricted from Russian airspace, which adds dramatically to time and cost of long-haul flights.Now the Persian Gulf War is shutting down airports across the Middle East, and further tightening air corridors.Air ticket prices are rocketing higher, and planes full on flights between Europe and Asia.Chinese carriers enjoy permission to overfly Russia, and are taking advantage, adding 3,000 flights between major commercial hubs in Europe and China.
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Report:
Good morning.
We knew this was coming. Chinese airlines are allowed to fly over Russia, and European and North American airlines cannot. That is an enormous advantage in cost and time. And now the airspace across the Persian Gulf closing off, that bypass route isn’t available either.
Chinese airlines’ flights to Europe are shorter, less expensive, and avoids the war zones. Those are advantages that Chinese carriers are taking advantage of, adding nearly 3,000 flights.
Persian Gulf airports are closed, and naturally travelers are scrambling for alternatives. Chinese airlines can offer direct flights from East Asia to Europe, and competing airlines cannot. It’s that simple. Ticket prices are going up, and planes are filling up. Beijing to Paris flights are basically sold out, with some one way-business class seats available for over $11,000. That’s one-way. On Air France, economy-class seats have tripled, to over $3,600. Again, one way, and those are selling out.
So the Chinese are increasing their flights. Air China will add 1,100 flights, China Southern is in for over 800, and smaller airlines are increasing flights to Europe. They’re also establishing new routes.
Aviation Week looks here at the Switzerland-China air traffic. Last year, that segment was 345,000 round-trip passengers, which was a 17.8% increase from 2024. Zurich-Shanghai are between two giant financial centers; these are far more likely to be higher-revenue passengers from rich cities.
During coming months, China Eastern will increase their seats from 1.58 million last year, to 1.9 million. That’s a 20% rise. Air China will open new routes in Frankfurt and Milan.
Milan, Frankfurt, and Zurich are wealthy cities, major industrial and commercial centers. They’re also well-served by their own national airlines, like Luftansa and SwissAir. But they all face the Russia problem. So the flights coming this direction just take longer.
Long-haul flights are a hassle for passengers. They’re a waste of time and money, and Chinese airlines offer routes that are shorter and cost less—and are doing so to some of the wealthiest passengers in the world, flying back and forth between Zurich and Shanghai. So four out of five seats between China and Europe are now on Chinese airlines, and those passengers on Chinese planes don’t look out their windows and see rockets flying around.
Be Good.
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**Resources and links:**China-Europe Routes Grow As Chinese Carriers Gain edgehttps://aviationweek.com/air-transport/airports-networks/china-europe-routes-grow-chinese-carriers-gain-edgeSouth China Morning Post, China’s airlines add 2,900 flights to Europe as Russia access pays dividendshttps://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3347994/chinas-airlines-add-2900-flights-europe-russia-access-pays-dividendsHow Persian Gulf turmoil is reshaping Europe-Asia aviation landscapehttps://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3345379/how-persian-gulf-turmoil-reshaping-europe-asia-aviation-landscapeInside China Business, Chinese airlines grab market share from US and European carriers who have to fly around Russia
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