IndiGo Adds Guangzhou As First Step In India-China Resumption

IndiGo will relaunch flights to mainland China later this month, becoming the first carrier to announce the resumption of nonstop service between the two countries since the pandemic and a deadly border clash brought air links to a halt in 2020.

The Indian LCC intends to begin daily service between Kolkata and Guangzhou from Oct. 26, operated using Airbus A320neo aircraft. Subject to regulatory approval, it also plans to add a New Delhi-Guangzhou route. IndiGo previously served China before the pandemic and says existing local partnerships and operational arrangements will enable a swift restart.

“We are proud to be amongst the first to resume direct connectivity to China from two points in India,” IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers says. “This will once again allow seamless movement of people, goods, and ideas, while also strengthening bilateral ties between the two of the world’s most populous countries and fast-growing economies.”

The return of flights comes after years of frozen relations following clashes in the Galwan Valley in June 2020 that killed 20 Indian and four Chinese soldiers. However, in August, talks between foreign ministers led to an agreement to restore direct flights.

The restart marks a major development for one of Asia’s largest unserved markets. Before the shutdown, nine nonstop routes connected the two countries, with more than 1.25 million two-way passengers in 2019, according to Sabre Market Intelligence.

By 2024, traffic had fallen by half to around 617,000 passengers, with most travelers forced onto one-stop itineraries via hubs such as Hong Kong, Singapore and Bangkok.

Sabre data shows that in 2019, New Delhi-Shanghai was the largest city pair, carrying about 149,000 passengers, followed by New Delhi-Guangzhou and Mumbai-Shanghai. By 2024, Mumbai-Shanghai had become the largest, with around 60,000 passengers, while New Delhi-Shanghai attracted 51,900 and New Delhi-Guangzhou 40,500.

Chinese carriers historically dominated the China-India market. In 2019, China Southern Airlines held a 31% capacity share, China Eastern 27% and Air China 17%. Indian operators—including Air India and IndiGo—accounted for less than 20% combined.

“With this very important step, we are looking at introducing more direct flights into China,” Elbers adds. “As we take steady strides towards becoming a global aviation player, this is a significant move to strengthen our international network.”

In a statement, the Indian Foreign Ministry adds the resumption of flights will “further facilitate people-to-people contact” between the two countries and contribute towards “gradual normalization of bilateral exchanges.”

According to data provided by OAG Schedules Analyser, IndiGo offered daily Kolkata-Guangzhou and daily New Delhi-Chengdu flights until early February 2020 when service was halted due to the pandemic.