Mariam Kvrivishvili: Regular Flights to China Restores from 2023

China Southern Airlines, one of the leading airlines of the People's Republic of China, will resume regular air traffic in the direction of Georgia.

"It is good that direct flights with China will be restored. China is one of the priority destinations for the tourism sector of Georgia. Traditionally, tourists from China are distinguished by their spending power. I am sure that direct flights will contribute to the arrival of more Chinese tourists, will also have a positive impact on the dynamics of the development of the tourism and civil aviation sectors in 2023, and will become an additional incentive for the deepening of trade and economic relations between Georgia and China," - this is how the decision of the Chinese airline company responded to the Georgian economy and Deputy Minister of Sustainable Development Mariam Kvrivishvili.

According to the information of the deputy minister, the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia, other agencies determining the country's aviation policy are actively working to introduce new airlines to the Georgian aviation market. According to him, Georgia has all the opportunities to become a regional transit hub in the civil aviation sector.

It is worth noting that in 2019, there were 48,071 international visits from China before the pandemic, which was an increase of 50.9% compared to 2018, and China ranked fifteenth among the top 15 countries.

On the Urumqi-Tbilisi-Urumchi airline, regular flights will start from January 2023. According to the application submitted to the Civil Aviation Agency of Georgia, regular flights between Urumqi and Tbilisi will be operated every Friday until the end of the winter navigation season - March 25, 2023, with a frequency of 1 per week. China Southern Airlines suspended flights to Georgia in January 2020 due to the pandemic related to Covid-19 infection. The last regular flight to Georgia was carried out on January 23, 2020.