Civil aviation sector eyes more direct flights to U.S.

Goals for China's civil aviation sector this year include greatly increasing the number of direct flights to and from the United States and promoting the use of domestically made jets such as the C919 around the world, the Civil Aviation Administration of China said on Thursday.

The number of direct flights between China and the U.S. has recovered to 63 a week, Song Zhihong, the head of the administration, said at the civil aviation sector's annual conference in Beijing.

The international civil aviation market is continuing to grow, with the number of international flights to and from China expected to reach 6,000 a week by the end of this year, about 80 percent of the number before the COVID-19 pandemic.

China's international civil aviation market bounced back last year, Song said.

The number of international flights to and from China each week now stands at 4,600, up from less than 500 at the beginning of last year. The number of flights between China and Europe has returned to about 60 percent of the level before the pandemic.

The number of countries with flights to and from China is about 89.2 percent of the total before the pandemic.

China's civil aviation sector handled 62 million passenger trips last year, about 93.9 percent of the volume in 2019.

This year, the sector is expected to handle 69 million passenger trips.