China still no-fly zone

Singapore – China’s zero-Covid policy will hold back a full air travel recovery in the Asia-Pacific region, a top airline industry group warned yesterday, adding to calls for Beijing to ease its hardline stance.

The world’s second-biggest economy is seeking to stamp out the virus entirely, with lockdowns and mass testing, and the measures have hammered both domestic and international air travel.

The aviation sector’s recovery in Asia was already slow, and Willie Walsh, the International Air Transport Association chief, warned Beijing’s approach made the picture bleaker.

“It has been a brutal two years for airlines. But we are seeing signs of recovery now,” he told an aviation conference in Singapore.

“Unfortunately, [the] Asia-Pacific region will lag this recovery as China continues to pursue zero-Covid.”

In 2021 in Asia, international travel was only seven percent of what it was in 2019, compared with a worldwide figure of 25%, he said.

While the picture had improved at the start of this year, there was still a “long way to go”, he added.

China’s decision to stick with zero-Covid has put it at odds with many Asian governments, which have started reopening borders and dropping quarantine and testing requirements in recent months. –