Chinese budget airline Spring Airlines has delayed plans to run a route to the North Korean capital of Pyongyang, citing “market conditions,” a company official said Thursday.

The Chinese carrier was originally slated to begin scheduled flights to Pyongyang from February, but it decided to postpone the plans following North Korea’s fourth nuclear test on Jan. 6 and a rocket launch about a month later. 


An official of Spring Airlines in Shanghai denied the decision was related to the latest U.N. sanctions against North Korea for the bomb test and rocket launch.

Spring Airlines won regulatory approval to launch flights to Pyongyang on Jan. 12, according to China‘s civil aviation authorities.

Asked whether the airline could begin flights to Pyongyang in the second half of this year, the Spring Airlines official said the company has not yet reached a decision.

China, which backed the new U.N. resolution against North Korea, has said it would earnestly implement the new sanctions, but stressed that they should not affect the livelihood of North Korean people.

(khnews@heraldcorp.com)