New Route of the Day (2 April 2024): Juneyao Air between Shanghai PVG and Athens
China’s Juneyao Air inaugurated flights between Shanghai PVG and Athens on Tuesday 2 April. The 8,575-kilometre service will be maintained 3-weekly, on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, with the 322-seat 787-9 aircraft. The carrier faces no competition on the route that it initially planned to launch in 2020 but was forced to cancel following the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic.
Flight HO1657 departs Shanghai PVG at 01:55 local time, arriving in Athens at 08:55 local time. The return service, operating as flight HO1658, takes off from the Greek capital at 13:45 local time, touching back down in China at 05:05 local time the following morning.
What they said
Wang Junjin, Chairman of Juneyao Air, said: “Please allow me to express my sincere gratitude to the Chinese and Greek governments, partners, and all passengers for their support. With the full assistance of all parties, preparations for the launch of Juneyao Air’s Shanghai – Athens route have been completed after four years. China and Greece continue to promote the strong development of bilateral relations, improved economic cooperation, and advocate for the joint “Belt and Road” initiative.”
Yannis Paraschis, CEO of Athens International Airport, noted: “We warmly welcome Juneyao Air and the launch of its flights to Athens. The Chinese market is of great strategic significance to us, and Shanghai has become the preferred departure point for transfer passengers visiting Athens. Therefore, Juneyao Air’s route launch is not only the first nonstop service between the two cities, but will also bring major development opportunities to Athens Airport, the city of Athens and Greece. On behalf of Athens International Airport, we would like to express our sincere gratitude to Juneyao Air for its trust in the Athens market and the continued and close cooperation between the two parties. We sincerely wish Juneyao Air and the Shanghai – Athens route a smooth launch and excellent ticket sales.”
Ioanna Papadopoulou, Director of Communications and Marketing at Athens International Airport, added: “This is an exciting development for our airport, our city and our country and of course for the traveling public. It significantly increases our market’s connectivity through the airline’s rich network, also boosting the attraction and the importance of the Chinese market to Greece, which is growing year-on-year.”
Athens’ China capacity grows over 270%
This summer season, Athens will be served by both Air China and Juneyao Air offering flights to Beijing PEK and Shanghai PVG respectively. Jointly, they have 145,280 seats on the market for the duration of S24, representing an increase of 278.4% compared to S23.
In addition to Joneyao Air’s 3-weekly service, Air China is increasing frequencies on its flights between Beijing PEK and Athens from three to 5-weekly and is utilising its 312-seat A350-900 aircraft on the route this summer, compared to the 237-seat A330 deployed last year.
As a result, Athens Airport now boasts 8-weekly rotations to China compared to last year’s three.
Juneyao Air, which is a Connecting Partner of Star Alliance, will codeshare with Greece’s Aegean Airlines on the route. Boasting a fleet of over 90 aircraft, including nine wide-body 787-9s, Athens becomes the carrier’s second destination in Europe, complementing Helsinki. It will commence services to Brussels on 1 July and Manchester on 3 July.
