China’s Flight Suspensions Are Bad for Singapore Ties
Continued comity between the two nations could start to fracture if minor links break down.
Taking the hint.
Photographer: Roslan Rahman/AFP/Getty Images
At first glance, the suspension of flights to two Chinese cities doesn’t look like a big deal for Singapore Airlines Ltd. After all, Chongqing and Chengdu aren’t major routes for the renowned carrier that boasts 130 destinations around the world, but the move could put a dampener on one of the strongest friendships in the region.
From March 31, services between the city-state and China’s fourth and sixth largest metropolises will be halted less than five months after they began, the Straits Times reported citing a company spokesperson, who declined to elaborate. The airline didn’t receive approval from the Civil Aviation Administration of China, the second time in a year that the company’s flights to the country have been interrupted by regulatory uncertainty, the Chinese-language Singapore daily Lianhe Zaobao reported.