China is grappling with a fresh wave of travel disruption on January 19, 2026, as hundreds of flights are canceled or delayed across the country’s busiest aviation hubs.

Major carriers including China Eastern, China Southern, Air China, Shenzhen Airlines, Shanghai Airlines, Qingdao Airlines and XiamenAir have together scrapped at least 260 flights and delayed more than 1,000 services, snarling operations at key airports in Zhengzhou, Wuhan, Shanghai, Chengdu, Kunming and other cities.

The cascading disruption has stranded thousands of passengers and raised new questions about the resilience of China’s air transport system at the height of the winter travel season.

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Scope of the Cancellations Across China’s Major Hubs

Latest operational data compiled from China’s civil aviation tracking platforms shows that 266 flights were canceled nationwide on January 19, while more than 1,000 additional services were delayed. The most heavily affected facilities include Zhengzhou Xinzheng International Airport, Wuhan Tianhe International Airport, and Shanghai Pudong International Airport, all of which serve as key connecting points for both domestic and regional routes.

At Zhengzhou Xinzheng, cancellations reached double digits for multiple airlines, led by China Southern, China Eastern, Shenzhen Airlines and Shanghai Airlines, according to figures published by industry outlet Travel And Tour World on January 19. Wuhan Tianhe, which functions as a central hub for central China, also reported notable disruption, with China Eastern and China Southern together accounting for more than two dozen cancellations and delays. Shanghai Pudong, the country’s primary international gateway on the east coast, recorded a smaller percentage of outright cancellations but a large number of delays, especially on services operated by China Eastern and its Shanghai Airlines affiliate.

The turbulence comes on top of earlier disruptions during the first weeks of January, when winter weather and post-holiday congestion led to hundreds of delays at airports in Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu, Kunming, Nanjing and Hangzhou, according to a January 6 report from VisaHQ. While the current wave of cancellations is more concentrated among specific carriers and routes, it adds to a broader pattern of operational volatility that has marked the start of China’s 2026 travel year.

Which Airlines Are Most Affected

China Eastern Airlines has emerged as one of the most affected carriers in the latest round of disruptions. At Wuhan Tianhe alone, the airline canceled 15 flights, representing roughly 9 percent of its scheduled services there, and logged additional cancellations and dozens of delays at Shanghai Pudong. Its regional affiliates, including Shanghai Airlines and China United Airlines on other days this month, have also faced pressure as they operate dense short-haul networks that are particularly sensitive to schedule shocks.

China Southern Airlines, the Guangzhou-based giant and a key operator at Zhengzhou and Wuhan, has likewise reported multiple cancellations and extensive delays. At Zhengzhou Xinzheng, China Southern’s operations were hit with more than 20 cancellations and scores of delays, while at Wuhan Tianhe the airline scrubbed at least 11 flights, according to the same data set. XiamenAir, Qingdao Airlines, Sichuan Airlines, Lucky Air, Chengdu Airlines and others have also recorded multiple cancellations, underscoring the systemic nature of the disruption across the Chinese airline ecosystem.

Air China, the Beijing-headquartered flag carrier, is involved primarily through its operations at Zhengzhou, where it canceled at least five services and delayed several more. While its headline numbers are smaller than those of China Eastern and China Southern in this particular episode, the impact at a transfer-focused airport such as Zhengzhou is magnified because missed connections ripple onward to other cities, including Beijing, Guangzhou and Shanghai.

Cities and Airports Bearing the Brunt

Although the cancellations and delays are spread across multiple regions, a handful of hubs are bearing the brunt of the disruption. Zhengzhou Xinzheng International in central Henan province has recorded some of the most severe operational strain, with at least 21 China Southern flights canceled and sizable portions of scheduled services pulled by China Eastern, Shenzhen Airlines, Shanghai Airlines, Qingdao Airlines, Air China and XiamenAir. With so many different carriers cutting capacity simultaneously, passengers at Zhengzhou have faced particularly acute challenges rebooking or rerouting.

Wuhan Tianhe International, which connects central China with the Yangtze River Delta and the south, is also heavily affected. China Eastern, China Southern, Shandong Airlines, Shanghai Airlines and Shenzhen Airlines have all canceled flights into and out of the city, leaving some routes temporarily without viable same-day alternatives. Wuhan’s position on many trunk routes linking northern and southern China means cancellations there can quickly cascade, forcing airlines to reshuffle aircraft and crews on short notice.

Shanghai Pudong International, while showing a lower proportion of cancellations than Zhengzhou or Wuhan, is dealing with a large number of delays. China Eastern and Shanghai Airlines have pulled several services, and dozens more are running behind schedule. Pudong’s role as a primary gateway for long-haul international flights amplifies the stakes; even short delays on feeder flights from cities like Wuhan, Zhengzhou or Kunming can cause passengers to miss onward connections to Europe, North America or Southeast Asia.

Causes: Weather, Congestion and Systemic Strain

Authorities have not issued a single unified explanation for the surge in cancellations on January 19, but a mix of familiar factors appears to be at play. Airline operations managers interviewed by Chinese media in recent weeks have pointed to lingering winter weather patterns in northern and central China, including low visibility, freezing rain and strong winds, which can disrupt takeoffs and landings or require time-consuming de-icing procedures.

Post-holiday congestion is another critical ingredient. Earlier in January, after the New Year period, China’s airports saw more than 600 delays and several dozen cancellations in a single day, with Beijing Capital, Shanghai Hongqiao, Chengdu Tianfu, Kunming Changshui, Nanjing Lukou and Hangzhou Xiaoshan among the worst affected. This surge strained airport slots, ground handling resources and crew duty rosters, leaving airlines with little spare capacity to absorb further shocks as winter weather persisted.

Beyond short-term weather and demand surges, industry analysts note that Chinese carriers are still rebalancing their fleets and crew networks after years of pandemic-related adjustments and the subsequent rapid rebound in demand. Aircraft repositioning issues, crew shortages on certain routes and tight turnaround times at congested airports can quickly snowball into large-scale disruption when even a handful of flights are delayed or canceled early in the day. In this context, the 266 cancellations recorded on January 19 represent not just an isolated event but a symptom of broader systemic strain.

Knock-on Effects for International and Regional Routes

While the latest set of cancellations is centered on domestic operations, it lands amid wider turbulence in China’s international aviation links, particularly with Japan. Flight data compiled by financial news services in Hong Kong indicates that approximately 2,195 flights on China–Japan routes scheduled for January 2026 have been canceled, representing an overall cancellation rate of just over 40 percent. All flights on 46 specific China–Japan routes have reportedly been scrubbed for the two weeks spanning late December and early January.

Major Chinese carriers including Air China, China Eastern, China Southern and low-cost player Spring Airlines have rolled out special ticket change and refund policies to deal with the fallout. The cancellations are being attributed to a combination of geopolitical tensions, safety advisories and operational considerations, following a series of political statements from Tokyo and travel warnings issued by Beijing. For passengers, the result is a highly uncertain environment for cross-border travel between two of Asia’s biggest economies right at the start of the new year.

The domestic chaos unfolding on January 19 compounds these challenges. Travelers who had hoped to connect through cities like Shanghai, Beijing or Guangzhou onto regional flights now face an elevated risk of missed connections, cancellations and last-minute rebookings. Travel agents report that some passengers are proactively rerouting itineraries through third-country hubs in South Korea, Singapore or the Middle East to avoid potential bottlenecks within mainland China’s network.

Passenger Experience: Long Queues, Scarce Rebooking Options

On the ground, scenes at several affected airports have featured long lines at check-in counters and transfer desks as passengers scramble for new options. With so many carriers hit at once, same-day rebooking has become difficult on key trunk routes linking Wuhan, Zhengzhou, Shanghai, Chengdu, Kunming and other large cities. In some cases, travelers are being offered seats one or two days later, or being rerouted through secondary airports with lengthy layovers.

Reports from local media and social platforms describe passengers in Zhengzhou and Wuhan waiting hours for updates, with some complaining about limited information from airline staff and difficulty accessing timely updates via apps and call centers. Others have posted images of crowded departure halls and makeshift queues forming around service desks for China Eastern, China Southern and XiamenAir. For international travelers unfamiliar with Chinese-language notification systems, the situation has been particularly challenging.

Airlines are attempting to mitigate the disruption by issuing meal vouchers, arranging accommodation for overnight delays and adding extra staff at information points. However, the sheer volume of affected travelers has strained these efforts. Some passengers told Chinese outlets that they received notifications of cancellations only after arriving at the airport, leaving them with little flexibility to adjust plans or consider alternate modes of transport such as high-speed rail.

What Travelers Need to Know Right Now

For travelers with plans to fly into, out of or within China over the coming days, industry experts are advising a highly cautious approach. Anyone scheduled to depart from Zhengzhou Xinzheng, Wuhan Tianhe or Shanghai Pudong is urged to check their flight status repeatedly on the day of travel, as further schedule adjustments are possible. Even if a flight is not formally canceled, the likelihood of delays remains elevated given the ongoing backlog and the need for aircraft and crew repositioning.

Passengers connecting through Chinese hubs from international origins should build in generous buffer times between flights or consider rebooking onto itineraries with longer layovers. Travel consultants recommend that foreign travelers keep printed copies or screenshots of e-tickets, email confirmations and any airline notifications, in case mobile apps become difficult to access or language barriers complicate communication with airport staff.

Travelers are also being encouraged to familiarize themselves with each airline’s current rebooking and refund policies, which may be more flexible than standard rules given the scale of disruption. Many Chinese carriers have temporarily relaxed change fees on affected routes, particularly where long-haul connections are involved. However, the exact terms can vary not only by airline but also by fare class and booking channel, so checking directly with the carrier or a trusted agent is essential.

Outlook for the Coming Days

Looking ahead, the key variables shaping China’s air travel outlook in late January will be weather conditions, network congestion and the speed at which airlines can clear the existing backlog. Meteorological agencies have forecast continued cold and occasionally unstable weather across parts of northern and central China in the near term, meaning that further localized disruptions cannot be ruled out. At the same time, aviation authorities are under pressure to keep traffic flowing as the country moves toward the busy Lunar New Year period.

Industry observers expect airlines such as China Eastern, China Southern and Air China to employ a combination of schedule trimming, aircraft upgauging on high-demand routes and dynamic use of spare capacity to stabilize operations. Nevertheless, the high baseline level of demand and the ongoing complications on China–Japan routes suggest that the system will remain fragile for at least several weeks. In practical terms, that means travelers should be prepared for last-minute changes and allow extra time and flexibility when planning journeys through Wuhan, Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou and other major hubs.

For now, the disruption on January 19 underscores how quickly a confluence of weather, congestion and structural constraints can trigger major travel chaos across China’s vast aviation network. With hundreds of flights canceled and more than 1,000 delayed in a single day, passengers and airlines alike are being reminded that the country’s rapid aviation growth still comes with operational growing pains, particularly during the most demanding travel seasons of the year.