India-China Direct Flights Set to Restart After Five-Year Pause

A positive shift in India-China relations appears on the horizon as direct passenger flights between the two countries prepare to take off again after a prolonged suspension. From late October 2025, select routes will reconnect bustling hubs, beginning with IndiGo’s service linking Kolkata in India to Guangzhou in China. This development highlights efforts to dial down diplomatic strains, potentially easing travel for millions and boosting economic interactions.

Breaking the Ice: IndiGo’s Route Revival

The Announcement: IndiGo Takes Off on a Historic Route

India’s largest low-cost carrier, IndiGo, announced on Thursday that it will launch daily non-stop flights between Kolkata and Guangzhou beginning October 26, 2025. The route will be operated using IndiGo’s reliable Airbus A320neo aircraft, catering to the growing demand for efficient connectivity between eastern India and southern China’s manufacturing powerhouse. This marks the first direct commercial flight between the two countries since the suspension in 2020.

While the Kolkata-Guangzhou service kicks things off, sources indicate that additional routes, such as Delhi-Guangzhou, are in the pipeline and could follow soon, pending regulatory approvals from both sides. The resumption is a direct outcome of recent bilateral agreements aimed at easing travel restrictions, which had been in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the infamous Galwan Valley clash in June 2020.

The Long Grounding: Roots in Conflict and Crisis

Direct flights between India and China ground to a halt in early 2020, first due to the coronavirus outbreak and then solidified by the June 2020 clash in the Galwan Valley along the disputed border, which claimed lives and sparked a wave of countermeasures. Before the cutoff, the skies hummed with more than 500 weekly flights across dozens of city pairs, supporting everything from leisure trips to corporate deals.

The absence rerouted passengers through distant stops in Southeast Asia, hiking expenses and durations. Recent progress in talks—covering military pullbacks and trade forums—has paved the way for this reopening, marking a cautious step toward mending ties.

Ripple Effects: From Commerce to Cultural Ties

Beyond the runways, this news carries weight for economies intertwined despite frictions. China holds the spot as India’s biggest trade counterpart, with exchanges topping $118 billion last year; revived flights could streamline supply chains in tech, drugs, and fabrics. Tourism stands to gain too—pre-2020 saw over a million visitors from China to India yearly, fueling local revenues, while thousands of Indian learners in China faced barriers without easy access.

On the world stage, it echoes recent summits and negotiations, serving as a low-stakes gesture of goodwill. Still, experts note that visa streamlining and mutual infrastructure trust will be key to lasting momentum.

• The October 26 launch for Kolkata-Guangzhou dailies by IndiGo is locked in, subject to last-minute clearances.
• The five-year stretch traces back to the 2020 dual hits of pandemic and border flare-up.
• It ties into thaw signals from ongoing dialogues, though complete ease requires more accords.
• Operations will feature A320neo aircraft, with no rivals announced yet for the jumpstart.

Cross-checks show harmony across global wires, underscoring the announcement’s solidity.

On the Horizon: Steady Ascent or Bumpy Ride?

As IndiGo’s inaugural post-pause flight lifts off from Kolkata, it embodies reconnection amid lingering shadows from the frontier. For disrupted families, scholars, and traders, it’s a vital lifeline. Yet, with patrols persisting and trade gaps yawning, endurance depends on dialogue’s depth.

Could this herald a surge in skyways between these giants? The trajectory points upward, but steady hands at the controls will decide. For now, the boarding call rings out—secure your spot and watch the bridges build.