Xi Jinping's request for additional flights to the United States has been opposed: Russian airspace differences turn geopolitics into aviation costs

While Xi Jinping is about to visit Washington, China International Airlines applied for a temporary increase in Beijing’s flights to New York and Washington, but was opposed by industry organizations representing American Airlines, Delta Air Lines and United Airlines. The controversy was, on the surface, a flight time application, but behind the special aviation rights environment formed after the Russian-Ukrainian war: American Airlines could not fly over Russian airspace, while some Chinese airlines could still use Russian routes.

On September 18, Reuters that US aviation industry organization Airlines for America objected to the U.S. Department of Transportation, saying that if the airline operates these temporary flights directly as normal regular flights, it would further expand the cost gap between US airlines. The organization suggested that if regulators allow increased flights, the relevant flights should also be limited to the charter nature, avoiding being a precedent for future expansion of regular flight rights.

The same Sino-American route, the flight conditions are not the same

After the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian war, Russia banned U.S. airlines from using their airspace, and the United States also imposed corresponding restrictions on Russian airlines. Chinese airlines are not subject to the same restriction, so some Sino-Ukrainian routes can continue through Russia or neighboring routes, receiving shorter flight distances and lower fuel, crew and aircraft use costs.

On long-distance intercontinental routes, route differences directly change the conditions of commercial competition. If U.S. airlines have to fly around Russia, the length of the flight may increase, with fuel consumption, crew time and operating costs rising; longer flights may also affect seats and cargo capacity for flights requiring reserves, crew rotations and cabin loads.

The U.S. aviation industry thus sees “can it fly over Russia” as one of the core issues of fairness in the negotiations for the resumption of Sino-U.S. air rights.The U.S. Department of Transportation had previously considered restricting Chinese airlines from using Russian airspace on routes to the U.S., but the plan has not been implemented.

Additional application coincides with Xi Jinping's visit to the United States, business approval with diplomatic time

The flight requested by National Airlines is close to the time of Xi’s State Visit, involving routes such as Beijing to New York and Washington, D.C. American Airlines are concerned that once the temporary demand is approved in the form of regular flights, National Airlines may apply for more regular flights in the future accordingly.

At present, the U.S. Department of Transportation and National Airways have not responded publicly to the latest objections of industry organizations. Whether flights are authorized, in what categories operate, and whether additional route conditions are imposed, remains to be decided by the U.S. Department of Transportation.

The number of flights is not only affected by market demand, but also has long been constrained by bilateral relations, airspace policy and mutual approval mechanisms of the two countries regulators.

Passengers see tickets, airlines calculate sanctions and routes.

From the passenger perspective, increased flights often mean more travel options and potential price competition; from the airline perspective, different routing rights in the same market could create structural cost gaps.

Public flight records show that flights between Beijing and New York, such as National Airways CA981, are still operational. For airlines, the use of shorter routes will affect the cost of fuel, personnel, maintenance and scheduling behind a ticket. The objections of U.S. counterparts are therefore not focused on whether Chinese airlines can enter the U.S. market themselves, but whether both sides compete under the same airspace conditions.

This dispute is also part of the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian war. Russian airspace across the northern Eurasian continent is an important component of many of the shortest routes from East Asia to North America and Europe. After Western airlines lost this channel, China, India and some Middle Eastern airlines gained relative flight advantage on several cross-continental routes.

Summit can change the number of flights, but it is difficult to change geography and sanctions structure immediately.

Xi Jinping and Trump are about to hold talks, and the two sides are simultaneously dealing with issues such as tariffs, rare earth, artificial intelligence, Taiwan and commercial exchanges.Air transportation itself, although not the most central topic of the summit, reflects a concrete difficulty in the process of restoring bilateral relations: even if the two sides are willing to increase personnel exchanges, third-country sanctions and airspace policy can still cause asymmetrical costs.

If the U.S. Department of Transportation approves new domestic flights, it will facilitate the movement of Chinese and U.S. personnel during and after the summit in the short term; if additional charter aircraft or route conditions are added, it means that the U.S. will continue to place fair competition until the capacity is restored.

The flight controversy demonstrates that geopolitics does not exist only in diplomatic statements. The airspace blockade formed by the Russian-Ukrainian war transformed flight routes into fuel, time and ticket prices, then into commercial regulation between China and the United States. For ordinary travellers, it ultimately reflects whether flights increase, how much ticket prices and how long a trip across the Pacific takes.