Ningbo airport launches summer routes

Travelers stream into the Ningbo Lishe International Airport terminal. [Photo/Tide News]

As summer approaches, Ningbo Lishe International Airport is expanding its domestic network with several new and resumed flights.

Among the highlights are direct routes to Manzhouli in Inner Mongolia autonomous region and Kashgar in Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region — marking the airport's most northern and western destinations yet.

Starting June 26, the Manzhouli route will resume with Boeing 737-800 aircraft flying three times a week. The four-hour flight spans 2,644 kilometers, becoming the airport's second-longest domestic route after the Ningbo-Turpan service.

On June 27, the Kashgar flight will relaunch via Yinchuan, operated daily using Airbus A320 aircraft. The journey covers about 4,250 km and takes roughly eight and a half hours. With this addition, Ningbo now connects to four destinations in Xinjiang.

From July 1 to Aug 31, the Ningbo-Urumqi route will be upgraded to an Airbus A330 wide-body plane, offering greater capacity on the nearly seven-hour flight. This popular route runs up to five times daily.

Internationally, Ningbo airport will launch its first direct passenger flight to Hanoi, capital of Vietnam, on July 1.

The route will take just three and a half hours, complementing the existing all-cargo service to Hanoi that began in 2023. The addition of passenger flights is expected to enhance connectivity across Southeast Asia via Hanoi.