The diplomatic climate between the United States of America and the People's Republic of China was already better. It is therefore not surprising that there has been a long struggle to increase weekly flight frequencies for Chinese carriers. Now there is an agreement.

The US Department of Transportation has now confirmed that it has reached an agreement with the Chinese pedant that airlines based in the People's Republic of China will operate up to 31 US routes per week, effective March 2024, 50. This is a significant increase compared to the current state of things, as only 35 weekly rotations are currently permitted.

However, the agreement is far below what the Chinese side wanted, because before the corona pandemic there were more than 150 circulations per week between China and the USA. Restrictions were introduced in the wake of the crisis. These lasted significantly longer than comparable ones found on other international routes where the frequencies have to be agreed bilaterally. For example, up to and including August 2023, only 12 circulations per week were permitted. This was then gradually increased to 35 pieces.

The restriction also has diplomatic reasons, because if the Chinese side has its way, they would like to see all restrictions lifted. However, the industry association “Airlines for America” also sees the agreed increase as positive, as US airlines are likely to increase their offerings to the same extent. There may therefore be a significant expansion in the 2024 summer flight schedule, so that passengers can benefit from more capacity and more frequencies. It remains to be seen to what extent this will affect ticket prices, as demand remains very high.