China Eastern has reactivated all Shanghai-based planes

While China’s aviation industry was the first to suffer from the global health crisis a year ago, aggressive lockdowns and travel restrictions have allowed its airlines to resume travel and restore routes at a pace faster. One of the country’s largest carriers, China Eastern Airlines, recently took a milestone, saying its fleet of aircraft on the ground in Shanghai is now zero.

Aircraft use on the rise

According to the Global Times, which received the news directly from China Eastern, the size of the stranded fleet at the airline’s Shanghai base has fallen to zero. Although the airline operates from Shanghai’s two main airports – Hongqiao (SHA) and Pudong (PVG), it was not clear which base in Shanghai had grounded all of its planes.

Through research based on data from Planespotters.net’s list of parked China Eastern planes, it appears that there are still a few jets “parked” at both Shanghai airports. However, although now listed as parked, the jets were flying as recently as February.

Regardless of the specific airport, the news is a general indication that the country’s aviation market continues to recover.

The volume of passenger flights is expected to increase

Global Times notes that China Eastern’s average daily passenger flight volume has now dropped to around 2,400. However, a surge is expected in the coming weeks, with the Qingming Festival taking place in April and the May 1 public holidays ( labor day) the following month.

The carrier reports that it plans to add flights for this anticipated surge. The increase in services will support travel between cities such as Beijing, Guangzhou and Chengdu.

The two Shanghai hubs of China Eastern

Looking at the available flight data, it appears that China Eastern uses both Hongqiao and Pudong almost equally. With RadarBox.com’s heat map tool, we can see that Hongqiao recorded 198 aircraft movements per day, with Pudong up close at 181.4.

Using the routes tool from FlightRadar24.com, we can see how the airline uses the two airports in different ways. Shanghai Hongqiao is used exclusively for domestic services, while Pudong is used much more as a base for long-haul transcontinental operations. It is from Shanghai Pudong that the airline offers flights to North America, Europe, Oceania and South-Southeast Asia.

According to COVID-19 data from Worldometer.com, it appears that, at least in recent weeks, China has reduced its new daily count of cases to less than 20 a day. Some days that number was as low as five. Hopefully the rest of the world can follow suit as vaccination programs continue.

What do you think of the recovery of the aviation market in China? How long will it take other countries to achieve similar results? Let us know your thoughts by leaving a comment.