A passenger boards on a plane in Wuhan, Central China's Hubei province, on April 8, 2020. (Photo: Xinhua)

The number of Chinese passenger flights on Friday reached 10,262, exceeding the mark of 10,000 on a single day for the first time since February, according to the country's top aviation regulator.

China has so far restored about 60 percent of its passenger flight capability prior to the novel coronavirus pandemic, said Civil Aviation Administration of China on Saturday.

Due to the outbreak, both the passenger and the flight volume witnessed a staggering decline since Jan 23, it said, adding that the flight volume hit rock bottom at 3,931 on Feb 13, only 23 percent of the normal volume before the pandemic.

As the outbreak has leveled off across the country, coupled with the country's supportive policies, civil aviation sector has gradually recovered since late February. The number of average daily flight rose to 6,538 in March, 6,950 in April and 8,900 in May.