Hainan Airlines plans strong international expansion from Hainan

Hainan Airlines plans to launch more than 40 international routes out of Hainan over the next 5 years, following China’s new policy to build the island as a free trade port. Earlier this month, Beijing also announced a 30-day visa-free policy for citizens from 59 countries into Hainan, to be effective from May 1. The carrier plans to raise the number of international services out of the province to 58 in 3 phases, and to drive inbound tourist numbers to 2m. The target is to build Haikou as a gateway for services to Japan and Korea, as well as Southeast Asia, building the inbound traffic for connections onto Europe and the US. It will also tap on the potential of Sanya, launching new routes to key cities in Southeast Asia. Hainan Airlines’ parent HNA Group owns 3 airports in Hainan: Haikou Meilan, Sanya Phoenix, and Qionghai Bo’ao <br/>