China Eastern increases flights to meet Spring Festival travel demand

China Eastern Airlines has scheduled about 8,000 flights to meet the demands of travelers during the Spring Festival travel rush, which kicks off on Thursday and will last till March 8.

According to the carrier, the most popular destinations include Shanghai, Xi'an of Shaanxi province, Qingdao of Shandong province, Chengdu of Sichuan province, Guangzhou of Guangdong province and Hangzhou of Zhejiang province, with each of their airports expecting to receive more than 100 extra flights during the peak period.

Compared with last year, air travel demand has been on the decline as many trips have been canceled due safety concerns arising from the emergence of new COVID-19 cases in China.

"The amount of air travelers has stayed flat in the past few days, and on the first day of the travel rush, there is no significant rise in passenger flow, probably because they are shelving their travel plans and have been dissuaded by the need for additional documents required by respective local contagion departments," said Yu Ping, a vice manager with China Eastern Airlines.

On the first day of the Spring Festival travel rush, known as the world's largest annual human migration, 7,638 flights were canceled as of noon (12 pm), accounting for 51.93 percent of the total planned flights of the day, according to data by Chinese aviation data and solution service provider AirSavvi.

At the same time, China Eastern and Shanghai-based budget carrier Spring Airlines both announced that customers who have bought tickets for flights during the 40-day period can apply for refunds or reschedule their trips for free.

All those traveling through the terminals at Shanghai's two airports are required to wear masks and have their temperature measured with infrared thermometers, according to the Shanghai Airport Authority.

The authority has also prepared masks, protective gear and disinfection products at departure halls to meet the needs of travelers, official sources said.

Li Junyao in Shanghai contributed to this story.