Air Travel Will Normalize in 2023-2025, Foreign Students...

Source:Reuters,Study International

China will focus on expanding domestic flights and restoring international air travel in 2023-2025, the country's aviation regulator said on Friday, as it issued a new five-year development plan for a sector heavily battered by COVID.

Taking into account the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2021-2025 five year plan has been divided into two parts, according to the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC).

For the 2021-2022 period, China will consolidate its efforts in COVID-19 control and prevention, as well as focusing on reforms and specifying more support measures, so that "developmental momentum" could be unlocked later.

The period from 2023 to 2025 is a period of growth, said the CAAC.

"The focus is to expand the domestic market, restore the international market, release the impact from reforms and improve the level of opening up."

Foreign Student Situation

Since shutting down its borders, China has halted issuing visas beginning March 2020  to international students, leaving many new and returning students stranded abroad. At the time of writing, only South Korean students have been granted visas for return, while students from other countries await the green light for re-entry.

In another press statement, Malaysian Officials previously mentioned in December 2021 that China could allow international students to resume their studies, with priority reserved for final-year students who require on-campus facilities to complete lab work and research as part of their degree programme.

Currently, China stands behind the US as the country with the second-largest international student population.