Direct India-China Flights Are Back: What It Means for Sourcing Trips to China

Direct flights between India and China went dark after the 2020 Galwan border clash. Five years later, they're back - alongside faster visa processing on both sides - and that changes something real for Indian buyers who want to see a factory before placing a large order.

What's flying now

• Air India: Delhi to Shanghai Pudong, launched February 1, 2026, now 5x weekly (a Mumbai-Shanghai route is planned for later in 2026)
• IndiGo: Kolkata to Shanghai, daily, launched March 29, 2026
• China Eastern: Kunming to Kolkata, restarted April 19, 2026, 6x weekly
• Air China: Beijing to Delhi, restarted April 21, 2026, 3x weekly

Together these add up to roughly 40 nonstop flight movements a week between the two countries - still short of pre-2020 capacity, but enough to make a factory visit a realistic direct trip again instead of routing through Bangkok or Hong Kong.

Visas got faster too

• India reopened tourist visas to Chinese passport holders on July 24, 2025, ending a five-year freeze
• India streamlined business visa approval for Chinese professionals in December 2025, cutting an extra layer of review - typical processing is now about four weeks instead of the long delays before
• On the outbound side, standard Chinese visa processing for Indian travellers runs about 4-5 working days through the embassy in Delhi or consulates in Mumbai, Shanghai, and Kolkata

Why this matters if you buy from China

For the past few years, the practical alternative to a factory visit was routing through a third country, or working entirely on trust from photos and video calls. With direct flights and faster visas back, visiting a shortlisted supplier before committing to a large order is realistic again - still one of the best ways to catch what a catalogue or a call can't show you: real production capacity, actual working conditions, and whether the "factory" is really a trading company.

If a trip isn't in the cards yet

Not every buyer can fit a China trip into this quarter. IndiaChinaB2B exists for exactly that gap - browse verified supplier profiles and product catalogues, and send an inquiry directly, without booking a flight first.