China’s airlines have been offered a rescue package of nearly half a billion dollars in a bid to save the country’s battered aviation sector.
The Ministry of Finance said 3.29 billion yuan ($492 million) in cash would be provided – but only when the average daily number of domestic flights per week is lower than or equal to 4,500 flights.
The number of daily flights had exceeded 6,000 for two days in a row, according to Variflight data on Tuesday.
China’s airline industry, which took a heavy hit after authorities locked down the mega city of Shanghai in early April, has showed signs of recovery in recent days.
Chinese airlines would not be receiving subsidies for the week of June 4 to 10, as conditions for cash support were not triggered, CAAC News, a publication affiliated with Civil Aviation Administration of China said last week.
The Chinese travel sector is banking on a rebound in the second half of 2022.
According to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, the number of domestic travellers reached 79.6m during the Dragon Boat Festival holidays from June 3-5, representing 87% of the pre-pandemic levels but down 11% year-on-year.
Domestic travel revenue dropped 12% year on year to 25.8 billion yuan, recovering to 66% of the pre-pandemic levels.
“Travellers’ hotel bookings during the Dragon Boat Festival holidays were more than 30% higher than in the Ching Ming Festival holidays from April 3-5, according to Trip.com’s data.
“That suggests an increasing domestic travel demand on easing of the pandemic restrictions,” said Kelvin Lau, an analyst at Daiwa Capital Markets in Hong Kong.
- Reuters, with additional editing by George Russell
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