Madrid International Airport: New Connections With South-East Asia

Aware of the importance of South-East Asia for the tourism market, in 2016 Madrid authorities achieved a major boost for Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas International Airport in terms of air traffic connectivity with this geographical area by opening up new direct flights to a range of leading destinations.

The two existing connections with Seoul and Beijing were joined in June by direct flights to Shanghai and Hong Kong. The former is operated by Iberia and China Eastern Airlines and consists of four inward bound and three outward bound flights a week; this is significant because it marks the start of Iberia’s operations on the Asian continent. The Spanish airline operates this route with the most modern aircraft in the fleet, the Airbus A330-200, with 288 seats, 19 in Business and 269 in Tourist class; both cabins offer a la carte individual entertainment and advanced Wi-Fi on transoceanic flights.

The direct flight to Hong Kong is operated by Cathay Pacific and flies four times a week; it is estimated that more than a hundred thousand passengers will take this route over the first year of operation.