China Eastern Airlines is likely to launch the service from May with an Airbus A330 aircraft. The airline also plans to resume flights between Kunming and Kolkata in the summer.
Flights between India and China resumed last October after a five-year hiatus. From India, IndiGo and Air India operate flights to Guangzhou (from Delhi and Kolkata) and Shanghai (from Delhi), respectively.
China Eastern Airlines resumed its Shanghai-Delhi service last November with three weekly flights, which was scaled up to a daily flight from January. A source said the route is performing well with a load of more than 80 percent. In addition to point-to-point traffic, the airline also sees passengers traveling to Japan and Korea.
“The introduction of flights between Mumbai and Shanghai is a welcome step. It will improve connectivity with China and beyond,” said Anil Kalsi, board member of the Federation of Associations in Indian Tourism and Hospitality.
India started issuing e-visas to Chinese nationals last July in a sign of normalization of ties. China also introduced an online visa application system in India last December to speed up processing.
More than three lakh Indians traveled to China in CY2025, preliminary data from the Ministry of Tourism shows. Although largely for trade and business purposes, tour operators have begun to promote leisure travel to China with the resumption of direct flights.
“Visa processes should be further relaxed and streamlined so that more people can travel between the two countries,” Kalsi added.
Published on February 27, 2026
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