First flight takes off from İstanbul after China opens borders

Photo: AA

China opened its borders after three years of restrictions that were implemented due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The first international flights arrived at China airports on Sunday (January 8) with the ending of the restrictions imposed since March 2020, and the first flight from Türkiye after the pandemic was the scheduled flight of China Southern Airlines from İstanbul to Guangzhou today (January 10).

The 240 passengers were served chocolates after completing their check-in procedures and a ceremony was held at the gate from which the passengers were taken to the plane.

China Southern Airlines Türkiye General Manager Wen Demei gave a brief speech at the ceremony and told how happy they were for realizing the flight from İstanbul to Guangzhou.

Demei said, "Türkiye had become the most important tourist destination for Chinese tourists. Unfortunately, we had to stop our flights due to the pandemic. I believe that in the following years, Türkiye will have significant potential. As the largest airline company in China, we wish to serve as a bridge between China and Türkiye."

The plane took off at 08.40 a.m. from the İstanbul Airport with its 240 passengers.

China easing "Zero Covid" policies following protests

There had been demonstrations protesting the Covid-19 restrictions in China in November.

In December the country downgraded the management of Covid-19 from "Class A" to "Class B" starting January 8, 2023, as a step toward easing the pandemic policy of the country known as "Zero Covid."

The Foreign Ministry of China announced on December 26 that passengers coming to China from abroad would no longer be obliged to take a health code from the Chinese embassies and would not be taken under quarantine even if they were positive.

Strategic market for tourism sector in Türkiye

Before the Covid-19 pandemic, the tourism sector in Türkiye had identified China as a strategic target market and the number of tourists coming to Türkiye from China was on the rise, with 247 thousand tourists in 2017, 394 thousand tourists in 2018, and 426 thousand tourists in 2019 coming to Türkiye from China. (PE)