More airliners have updated plans to resume and add direct international flights to China, especially ahead of the traditional Chinese New Year, as China optimizes its COVID-19 response measures to facilitate cross-border travel.

An airliner of Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates. (Photo: CFP)

Etihad Airways and Emirates, two leading airline giants based in the aviation hubs of Abu Dhabi and Dubai, are among those looking to expand flights to major Chinese metropolises.

"Emirates will ramp up its operations in China ahead of the new lunar year and in response to strong travel demand, boosting connectivity to its gateways, Guangzhou, Shanghai and Beijing, as the country reopens its borders and eases its COVID-related entry restrictions," said the Emirates media center on January16, 2023.

Etihad Cargo, the cargo and logistics arm of Etihad Aviation Group based in Abu Dhabi, announced plans to further expand its capacity offering to the Chinese market with the introduction of an additional weekly Abu Dhabi – Shanghai freighter flight from February 2, 2023, bringing the total freighter flights to eight per week.

Ethiopian Airlines, the leading airline in Africa, which links many major cities across the continent, is also gearing up to resume flights to China, its largest overseas market.

In a recent statement, the airliner announced that the frequency of its flights to Chinese cities will increase as of February 6, 2023, ultimately returning to the pre-COVID-19 levels on March 1, 2023, following the lifting of restrictions by the government of China.

Starting March 1, the flights will surge back to the pre-COVID-19 levels with daily flights to Beijing and Shanghai and 10 and four weekly flights to Guangzhou and Chengdu, respectively, the airlines said.