China Eastern Airlines, Air Canada and EVA Air are all preparing to launch new international routes to and from Asia in the coming weeks.
Shanghai Pudong-Zurich
China Eastern Airlines’ planned launch of Shanghai Pudong-Zurich service reflects the continued expansion of Chinese carriers across Europe, as geopolitical developments reshape competition on Asia-Europe routes.
The airline plans to begin 3X-weekly flights on June 18 using Airbus A350-900 aircraft, adding capacity on a route currently served only by Swiss. The service had previously been planned for 2025 but was not launched.
Before 2020, Zurich was linked to multiple mainland Chinese cities, including Beijing and Shenzhen, but Shanghai is currently the only mainland destination with scheduled service. Sabre Market Intelligence data shows Switzerland-China demand is recovering, with traffic reaching about 345,000 two-way passengers in 2025, up 17.8% year over year. Zurich-Shanghai was the largest city pair, accounting for approximately 92,300 passengers.
The Zurich route is part of a broader expansion by China Eastern across Europe. The airline recently announced plans to resume Shanghai-Stockholm service and earlier confirmed the launch of Xi’an-Vienna flights.
This comes Chinese carriers collectively continue to increase their presence in Europe, supported in part by ongoing access to Russian airspace, which allows shorter and more efficient routings compared with European airlines that must detour around Russia. At the same time, instability in parts of the Middle East is constraining operations at Gulf hubs.
Vancouver-Sapporo
Air Canada’s planned launch of winter-season service between Vancouver and Sapporo reflects growing demand for secondary Japan destinations and the airline’s strategy of strengthening Vancouver as a transpacific hub.
The carrier plans to begin a 3X-weekly service between Vancouver International Airport and Sapporo New Chitose Airport on Dec. 17, operating through late March 2027 using Boeing 787-8 aircraft. The route will become the only nonstop connection between North America and Japan’s Hokkaido region and the first direct link to Sapporo from North America since Hawaiian Airlines ended seasonal Honolulu service in March 2020.
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The route is heavily oriented toward winter tourism, with Hokkaido known for ski resorts, hot springs and winter festivals. While Canada has its own winter tourism destinations in British Columbia and Alberta, Air Canada appears to be targeting outbound leisure demand as well as inbound Japanese tourism to Western Canada.
The launch will further strengthen Air Canada’s position in the Canada-Japan market, where the airline already holds the largest share of nonstop capacity. According to OAG Schedules Analyser data, Air Canada served Japan from four gateways during the winter 2025-26 season, comprising daily Vancouver-Tokyo Narita and Toronto-Tokyo Haneda flights, as well as Montreal-Narita and Toronto-Narita services. The Star Alliance member also serves Osaka Kansai during the summer months from Toronto and Vancouver.
Taipei-Washington Dulles
EVA Air intends to begin a 4X-weekly service between Taipei Taoyuan International Airport and Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) in June, marking the airline’s first service to the U.S. capital region and its 10th destination in North America. The route will also be the first nonstop Washington-area service operated by a Taiwanese passenger carrier.
The addition comes as EVA Air continues expanding its North American network following the launch of Taipei-Dallas/Fort Worth service in October 2025. The U.S. is the airline’s second-largest international market after Japan and accounts for a significant share of Taiwan’s long-haul capacity.
The Washington route appears to be driven by connecting traffic as well as local demand. IAD is a major hub for Star Alliance partner United Airlines, providing extensive connectivity across the eastern U.S., Canada and Latin America. The route therefore strengthens EVA Air’s joint network connectivity within the alliance.
Demand data suggests the market can support nonstop service. Sabre Market Intelligence data shows about 40,000 two-way passengers traveled between Taiwan and Washington in 2025, with most passengers currently connecting via U.S. West Coast hubs such as San Francisco and Los Angeles. The introduction of nonstop service is likely to capture a significant share of this connecting traffic while also stimulating new demand.
The route also fits a broader trend in the Taiwan-U.S. market, where Taiwanese carriers have been expanding aggressively and opening new long-haul routes to secondary U.S. cities. EVA Air currently holds the largest share of nonstop Taiwan-U.S. capacity, ahead of China Airlines and Starlux Airlines, and the addition of Washington further strengthens its position in the market.
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