North Korea's Air Koryo Resume Flight to Beijing Route

North Korea’s national airline could be planning to resume flights to China, according to a South Korean press report. File Photo by Yonhap News Agency/UPI

North Korea's national carrier was set to operate two flights between Pyongyang and Beijing this week, its website showed Thursday, drawing attention to whether the route will resume after more than a year of suspension amid coronavirus concerns.

According to the flight schedule released on Air Koryo's website, the airline's JS251 flight will depart from Pyongyang at 4:00 p.m. and arrive in Beijing at 5:50 p.m. on Thursday. Another flight is scheduled to depart from Beijing for Pyongyang on Friday.

The flights could mark the first time the North has operated an international commercial flight since January last year when it closed all ports of entry by land, sea or air as part of efforts to block the COVID-19 virus from spreading into the country.

It is unclear, however, whether the North will actually resume flights. In February last year, the airline released its flight schedule to the Russian port city of Vladivostok but did not operate the flights.

North Korea has not reported any case of COVID-19 virus infection, but it has called for nationwide efforts to prevent the virus from breaking out on its soil through intensified border controls and tightened quarantine processes.

April 01, 2021