Hainan Airlines launched on Saturday 22 March 2025 the first direct air route between China and Norway after the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to Xinhua, the Hainan Airlines flight HU769 departed at 01:30 a.m. (Beijing time) on Saturday 22 March 2025 and landed at Oslo Gardermoen International Airport at 5:02 a.m. local time also on Saturday 22 March 2025. That makes the flight duration 10 hours and 32 minutes which is significantly faster than any other connection between Norway and China.
Hainan Airlines will operate the route three times per week—on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays.
According to China Daily, Norwegian Ambassador to China Signe Brudeset said the new route would help strengthen cooperation between the two countries. Henning Kristoffersen, Commercial Counsellor at the Norwegian Embassy in China, was quoted saying the direct flight would support exchanges in tourism, trade, and culture.
Representatives from Hainan Airlines stated the new route would also support the export of Norwegian seafood and other local products to the Chinese market.
A water salute was held to mark the inaugural flight’s arrival at Oslo airport.
Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, Hainan Airlines operated direct flights between Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK) and Oslo Airport (OSL) from May to October 2019.
