Zhangjiajie Hehua, China reopens to traffic after lockdown

Dayong Zhangjiajie Hehua International Airport, the second largest airfield in South Central China’s Hunan Province after Changsha Huanghua, has reopened to traffic after a month-long closure due to COVID-related fears.

The airfield, the only international one in the Wuling Mountains region, was closed to all traffic on July 31 after a single case of COVID in Zhangjiajie resulted in a city-wide lockdown. All in-situ meetings and gatherings were suspended while cinemas, entertainment venues, and tourist sites were all closed.

The restrictive measures were eventually lifted on August 25 leading to the airport’s reopening on August 30. Juneyao Air (HO, Shanghai Hongqiao) was the first operator in, Sina reported, with flights HO1819 and HO1820 to each of Kunming Changshui and Hangzhou respectively. All arriving/departing passengers are subject to body temperature checks as well as onward tracking.

Before this latest wave, Zhangjiajie Hehua International Airport had an average of 85 inbound and outbound flights per day, with a daily throughput of more than 9,000 passengers, and routes covering all major domestic tourist cities.