1. Executive Summary: Market Overview
The Chinese aviation market continues to show resilient growth, with a total capacity increase of 7% year-on-year (YoY). The market remains heavily driven by internal travel, though international recovery is gaining momentum.
- Total Capacity Growth: +7% vs. December 2024.
- Domestic vs. International Split: Domestic capacity accounts for 82% of all seats (68.7 million seats).
- International Resilience: International capacity grew by 8% YoY, slightly outpacing domestic growth of 7%.
2. Leading Airlines in China
China Southern Airlines remains the dominant carrier by seat capacity, followed closely by China Eastern. Notably, low-cost carrier Spring Airlines saw the most significant growth among the top players.
Top Airlines by Departing Seats (December 2025)
| Rank | Carrier Name | Seats (Dec 2025) | Growth (vs. Dec 2024) | Domestic Share |
| 1 | China Southern | 10,707,509 | +14.6% | 15% |
| 2 | China Eastern | 9,524,403 | +5.3% | 14% |
| 3 | Air China | 8,018,922 | +7.9% | 12% |
| 4 | Hainan Airlines | 4,002,372 | +4.6% | 6% |
| 5 | Shenzhen Airlines | 3,318,850 | +2.0% | 5% |
| 8 | Spring Airlines | 2,466,354 | +18.1% | 4% |
3. Busiest Cities and Provinces
Aviation activity is concentrated in major economic hubs. Guangdong province remains the largest regional market, while Beijing and Shanghai continue to lead city-level capacity.
Top Regions by Capacity (December 2025)
| Province / City | Seats (Dec 2025) | Growth (vs. Dec 2024) | National Share |
| Guangdong (Prov.) | 8,071,781 | +10.1% | 12% |
| Beijing (City) | 5,359,470 | +6.3% | 8% |
| Sichuan (Prov.) | 4,758,029 | +4.8% | 7% |
| Shanghai (City) | 4,612,543 | +7.4% | 7% |
| Zhejiang (Prov.) | 4,110,073 | +14.8% | 6% |
4. Top Domestic Flight Routes
The “Golden Triangle” routes (Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen/Guangzhou) dominate the domestic market. However, there has been a notable shift in capacity toward Beijing Daxing (PKX) as the market matures.
- Busiest Route: Shanghai Hongqiao (SHA) to Shenzhen (SZX) with 669,000 seats, a 16% increase from 2024.
- Second Busiest: Beijing Capital (PEK) to Shanghai Hongqiao (SHA) with 650,000 seats.
- Notable Trend: While Beijing-Shanghai remains a top ranker, its total capacity is still roughly 8% below 2019 levels, reflecting a broader distribution of flights across newer airports like Daxing.
5. Key Market Trends
- Visa Relaxation Impact: China’s relaxation of visa requirements has fueled a 10-million seat increase at Shanghai Pudong (PVG), making it the fastest-growing airport in terms of absolute seat volume.
- Efficiency & Performance: Hainan Airlines leads the major carriers in On-Time Performance (OTP) at 88.65%, followed by China Southern at 87.78%.
- International Expansion: Carriers like Air China are aggressively expanding capacity to Japan (+171% YoY) and Germany (nearly doubled YoY) to restore pre-pandemic networks.
