Chinese airlines cut winter 2026 Southwest Pacific flights

By Andrew Curran.

Chinese airlines are scaling back services to Australia and New Zealand ahead of the Southern Hemisphere winter, reflecting seasonal demand trends across the Southwest Pacific aviation market.

According to AeroRoutes, several carriers, including Shenzhen Airlines, Xiamen Airlines, Tianjin Airlines, and China Eastern Airlines, have recently filed schedule updates showing reduced capacity.

China Eastern leads Southwest Pacific service reductions

China Eastern Airlines is making the most significant adjustments, cutting frequencies across six routes linking China with Australia and New Zealand.

The airline’s A330-200-operated Beijing Daxing (PKX) – Wuhan (WUH) – Sydney (SYD) round-trips will scale back from thrice-weekly to twice-weekly between April 15 and May 1, 2026, before dropping back to once-weekly between May 2 and June 30. 

China Eastern’s A330-200-operated Xi’An (XIY) – Nanjing (HKG) – Melbourne (MEL) round-trips will reduce from thrice-weekly to twice-weekly between May 3 and May 29 before being suspended altogether between June 1 and June 19. 

Similarly, the airline’s thrice-weekly A330-200 operated Xi’An – Nanjing – Sydney round-trips will drop to once-weekly between May 1 and May 31, before being cancelled altogether between June 1 and June 12. Flights on the route will resume on June 13, with twice-weekly round-trips scheduled through June 27. 

Auckland services hit hardest

China Eastern’s Auckland flights are among the hardest hit this winter. The airline’s twice-weekly A330-200-operated Hangzhou (HGH) – Auckland (AKL) round-trips will be suspended between May 12 and June 23. 

Likewise, the twice-weekly A330-200 operated Hangzhou – Sydney – Auckland round-trips will not operate between May 10 and June24. 

The airline’s recently introduced twice-weekly Auckland - Buenos Aires (EZE) flights appear to be operating normally over the upcoming winter. 

Additionally, China Eastern’s weekly Xi’An – Jinan (TNA) – Sydney round-trips will be suspended between May 11 and June 30.

Other Chinese airlines also reduce capacity

Meanwhile, Shenzhen Airlines normally flies three times weekly between Shenzhen (SZX) and Melbourne. But between May 9 and May 20, it will only operate two round-trips. 

Xiamen Airlines will also cut back its Melbourne services, although not to the same extent. Its daily B787-8 and B787-9 operated round-trips between Xiamen and Melbourne will scale back to four times weekly between May 7 and May 31. 

Finally, Tianjin Airlines has pushed back the start of its planned seasonal A330-200 operated Chongqing (CKG) – Sydney and Zhengzhou (CGO) – Sydney round-trips. The once-weekly Chongqing – Sydney will start on May 25 instead of the previously announced April 20, while the weekly Zhengzhou – Sydney flights will start on May 26 instead of the previously announced April 21.

Seasonal trends behind flight reductions

It is not unusual for Chinese airlines (and other airlines) to trim Southwest Pacific flights during the region’s winter low-season. After a slow post-pandemic re-start, Chinese airlines began accelerating their return to the region in 2024 and 2025. 

Sydney Airport says growth from China was particularly strong last year, with Chinese passport holders passing through the airport increasing 12.2% in the last quarter of the year compared with the same period in 2024. 

Auckland Airport also said direct travel demand to and from China strengthened significantly last summer. Total traveller volumes on China - Auckland direct services across November and December 2025 were up 10% compared to the November and December 2024. 

The airport adds that average aircraft load factors on the country-pair sat at about 91%, reflecting improved route performance and more consistent demand. 

Photo: Auckland Airport.

Contact the writer: andrew@aerosouthpacific.com