Mexico City, Mexico — Mexico has received its first direct flight from China since the beginning of the pandemic four years ago. China Southern Airlines landed at the Mexico City International Airport shortly before midnight Saturday.
Flight CZ 8031 landed at the Benito Juárez International Airport in Mexico City for the first time since 2020 after commercial flights from China were suspended due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The plane landed at Mexico City after leaving Shenzhen, China nearly 16 hours earlier. It’s landing Saturday night officially resumed flights between the two countries.
“With the arrival of flight number CZ 8031 at the Benito Juárez International Airport in Mexico City, starting this Saturday, May 11, the largest airline in the Asian country, China Southern Airlines, officially resumed direct flights between Mexico and China after a pause period due to the contingency caused by the pandemic in 2020,” Aeropuerto Internacional Benito Juárez Ciudad de México (AICM) reported in a social media post.
The Secretary of Tourism, Miguel Torruco Marqués and the Ambassadors of the People’s Republic of China in Mexico, His Excellency. Mr. Zhang Run and from Mexico in China, His Excellency. Mr. Jesús Seade Kuri, participated in the arrival ceremony of this new and historic flight operated by China Southern Airlines.
According to a statement by the Secretary of Tourism, the flight Saturday night is the longest route in China’s history.
In 2019, Mexico received 167,145 Chinese tourists by air. In 2023, 161,316 tourists arrived from China.
“China is a key player in international tourism as a source and destination market on a global and regional scale, ranking first in Asia in terms of tourists traveling to Mexico. It is also positioned in the UN Tourism world ranking, formerly UNWTO, as second place in tourist spending after the United States, according to 2022 data,” Torruo said.
He said that the direct flight leaves from the city of Shenzhen, China, to the Mexico City International Airport with a stopover on the return flight in Tijuana. The renewed flight will have two weekly frequencies.
