The Ministry of Transport allowed the reduction of air travel to China by 60-70%

Passenger air transportation from Russia to China may be reduced by 60-70% relative to the pre-pandemic level due to problems with the registration of Russian aircraft. Writes about it RBC with reference to the text of the letter of the deputy head of the Ministry of Transport Valentin Ivanov. The letter was addressed to the president of Opora Rossii Alexander Kalinin.

In 2019, China was included in the list of the ten most popular destinations among Russian airlines. During that year, Russian airlines carried about 3 million people on flights between countries. Valentin Ivanov expects that in 2023 the passenger traffic will decrease to 0.9-1.2 million people.

The reason for the decrease in the volume of passenger air transportation between Russia and China, according to Mr. Ivanov, was the lack of guarantees from the Chinese side that Russian aircraft would not be delayed at the request of third countries due to sanctions restrictions. In addition, flights with dual registration are prohibited in China – simultaneously in Russia, in Bermuda or in Ireland, Mr. Ivanov explained.

At the same time, Opora Rossii vice-president Gleb Kinder believes that if there is affordable air traffic, in particular from Russian regions, the passenger flow between the countries could reach 5 million people. Currently, flights to China are carried out mainly from Moscow and a number of cities in the Far East and Siberia.

Earlier, representatives of Russian airlines reported difficulties in flying to China due to a shortage of aircraft. 170 aircraft from the total fleet are under US sanctions, and about 500 more are not excluded from the Bermuda registry. In addition, during the years that China was closed to foreign tourists due to covid restrictions, Russian airlines have lost historic slots in the flight schedule for arrivals and departures.

More details – in the material “Kommersant FM” “Airlines are puzzled by flights to China”.

Milena Kostereva