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China Southern Airlines is set to relaunch nonstop flights between Delhi and Guangzhou after a six-year suspension, reopening a key air corridor between India and China and adding fresh capacity alongside IndiGo’s recently launched service.
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Daily Nonstop Service Set to Begin in Late September
According to China Southern’s India website, the carrier plans to begin a new daily service between Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport and Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport from 26 September 2026. The route will be operated under flight numbers CZ359 from Guangzhou to Delhi and CZ360 on the return leg from Delhi to Guangzhou.
Timetables published by the airline indicate that flight CZ359 is scheduled to depart Guangzhou at 15:35 and arrive in Delhi at 19:00 local time. The return service, CZ360, is slated to leave Delhi at 20:20, reaching Guangzhou at 04:15 the following morning, offering overnight connectivity into the airline’s extensive domestic and international network via its Guangzhou hub.
Industry route-tracking platforms show seven China Southern-operated departures per week now filed on the Delhi–Guangzhou city pair for the forthcoming season, reflecting a full daily schedule after several years without the carrier on this route.
Before the pandemic, China Southern had maintained regular operations linking Delhi and Guangzhou. Publicly available schedules from 2017 list CZ359 and CZ360 as the dedicated flight numbers on this city pair, underscoring that the airline is restoring a previously established connection rather than entering a new market.
Return Marks Next Phase of India–China Air Connectivity
The restoration of China Southern’s Delhi–Guangzhou service follows the earlier resumption of direct India–China links by Indian low-cost carrier IndiGo. Coverage from late 2025 and early 2026 shows IndiGo first reinstating Kolkata–Guangzhou, followed by a New Delhi–Guangzhou route, marking the first non-stop services between the two countries in nearly five years after flights were halted in 2020.
With China Southern now re-entering the Delhi–Guangzhou corridor, travellers will have multiple nonstop options on one of the most strategically important routes between the two countries. Flight comparison and schedule sites currently list IndiGo and China Southern among the operators flying direct between Delhi and Guangzhou, with a combined total of around seven or more weekly departures, depending on the travel period.
Analysts note that India–China air links had lagged broader regional recovery despite strong underlying demand from business travellers, students and visiting friends and relatives. The gradual restoration of routes such as Kolkata–Guangzhou and now Delhi–Guangzhou is viewed in published commentary as a sign of improving connectivity, even as wider bilateral relations remain cautious.
Timings Designed for Connections via Guangzhou Hub
The scheduled timings for China Southern’s renewed Delhi–Guangzhou flights appear tailored to tap into the airline’s growing hub structure at Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport. An afternoon departure from Guangzhou and an evening return from Delhi are expected to facilitate same-day connections to and from key cities across East Asia, Southeast Asia and Oceania.
China Southern’s network information for the current year highlights Guangzhou as its primary international gateway, with onward services to destinations such as Singapore, Tokyo, Sydney and Auckland, among many others. The overnight Delhi–Guangzhou leg arriving just after 04:00 positions passengers to connect onto morning departures from Guangzhou, which are common on many of the airline’s regional and long-haul routes.
Travel search platforms already display Delhi–Guangzhou itineraries on China Southern feeding into a range of Asia-Pacific destinations. The combination of IndiGo’s point-to-point offering and China Southern’s hub-and-spoke model is expected to broaden choices for Indian passengers travelling into mainland China and beyond.
Competitive Landscape Heats Up on DEL–CAN Route
The re-entry of China Southern introduces a major Chinese full-service carrier back into a route that IndiGo has recently used to establish a strong position. Direct-flights databases and booking engines show IndiGo and China Southern both selling non-stop seats between Delhi and Guangzhou for the upcoming season, with a mix of daily and near-daily operations across the two airlines.
Fare comparison tools already list China Southern among the carriers offering competitive pricing between Delhi and Guangzhou, alongside IndiGo and various one-stop alternatives via hubs in Southeast Asia and the Middle East. Increased capacity on the non-stop segment is likely to put downward pressure on average fares, particularly for leisure travellers and students.
For Guangzhou, the addition of another India route strengthens its role as a regional gateway for South Asian traffic. For Delhi, the return of a Chinese network carrier enhances long-haul connectivity options for passengers who may prefer to connect eastwards via China instead of more established hubs in the Gulf or Southeast Asia.
Six-Year Gap Reflects Pandemic and Policy Disruptions
China Southern’s last regular Delhi–Guangzhou services operated before 2020, with archived schedules from 2017 confirming CZ359 and CZ360 on the route. Industry commentary notes that direct links between India and China largely disappeared during the COVID-19 pandemic, amid strict border controls and a sharp reduction in international flying by Chinese carriers.
Discussion in aviation and travel forums through 2023 and 2024 frequently highlighted the absence of any non-stop flights between the two countries, despite historically strong trade and people-to-people ties. Travellers were forced to route via third-country hubs, often extending journey times and adding complexity around visas and transit rules.
As Chinese carriers gradually rebuild their international networks, China Southern has been steadily resuming and launching routes from Guangzhou to markets across Asia, Europe and Oceania. The decision to restore Delhi–Guangzhou fits into this wider pattern of re-expansion and suggests confidence in the underlying demand on the India–China corridor after a prolonged interruption.
With daily operations planned and schedules now published on official channels, the Delhi–Guangzhou relaunch by China Southern marks one of the clearest signs yet that pre-pandemic connectivity between the two countries is beginning to return in earnest.
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