The signing took place on the sidelines of the 81st Annual General Meeting  (IATA AGM) and World Air Transport Summit (WATS) in New Delhi.

The MoU was signed by Adnan Kazim, Emirates’ Deputy President and Chief Commercial Officer and Yan Fei, Air China’s Senior Vice President, Chief Commercial Officer, accompanied by senior executives from both sides.

Adnan Kazim said: “Our partnership with Air China commenced 26 years ago (July 1999) and since 2018 approximately, 18,000 Emirates customers have benefited from the expanded connectivity offered through our interline agreement.

Building on this success, we've recently announced the launch of two new Chinese cities—Shenzhen and Hangzhou—which will strengthen our East Asia operations. Shenzhen will feature our best-in-class products, including our brand-new Premium Economy cabin. As we continue expanding our investments in Chinese mainland, we look forward to deepening our partnership with Air China to meet growing travel demand in this strategic market and create new pathways for travel and trade between China and the global community."

Yan Fei said: “Air China highly values the cooperation with Emirates. The signing of this memorandum is an important milestone for the deepening of the cooperation between the two sides. Air China continues to implement "Belt and Road Initiative". By collaborating with Emirates, we will further expand our route network in China-UAE and global market and jointly promote global connectivity."

Under the MOU, Emirates and Air China will explore a reciprocal codeshare on select routes across each other’s networks. This would allow each airline to place its code on the other’s flights on China-UAE trunk routes as well as beyond Beijing and Dubai to an expanded list of points.

Emirates and Air China will also develop a framework for cooperation across cargo operations and respective frequent flyer loyalty programme, enhancing their value proposition for both travellers and businesses.

To further ensure seamless connectivity for customers, the two carriers will explore coordinating flight schedules or adjusting minimum connecting times. Once activated, customers of both airlines will benefit from a seamless booking process, single ticket itineraries and wider lounge access to new and exciting destinations.

Beyond commercial cooperation, both carriers plan to exchange best practices in areas such as revenue management, data analytics, digitalisation, brand management and Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), among others, through joint knowledge sharing and familiarisation visits.

Emirates in Chinese mainland

From 30 July, Emirates will operate 49 weekly flights to the Chinese mainland, including double daily services to Beijing and Shanghai as well as daily flights to Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Hangzhou. The airline's continued expansion into the Chinese mainland reflects the deepening UAE-China bilateral ties and underscores Emirates' longstanding commitment to advancing the objectives of the Belt and Road Initiative.