Shiliuyun-Xinjiang Daily (Reporter Chen Qiangwei) news: According to the Customs at Urumqi Tianshan International Airport, on January 7, 2026, a full-cargo aircraft loaded with 45.53 tons of freight took off from Urumqi Tianshan International Airport, made a technical stop in Uzbekistan and continued to Zurich, Switzerland. The flight marks the official resumption and frequency upgrade of the Urumqi-Zurich international cargo route that had been trialed six months earlier. Operated by Uzbekistan's Central Asian Airlines, the service is scheduled to run four times a week.

Photo taken on January 7, 2026 shows customs officers at Urumqi Tianshan International Airport oversee outbound cross-border e-commerce cargo. (Photo by Liu Feihu)

Liu Jingyi, deputy director of the Customs at Urumqi Tianshan International Airport, said the route’s resumption further strengthens the air link between Xinjiang and key air transport nodes in Europe, connects the logistics chain among Northwest China, the Central Asian hinterland and the European market, and provides commercial and logistics support for economic and trade cooperation along the route. Customs will keep focusing on the needs of new business models such as cross-border e-commerce, refine regulatory measures and service standards, and go all-out to ensure the route operates regularly and at high quality.

Urumqi Tianshan International Airport now operates 28 international cargo routes, building an air logistics network that blankets Central Asia and reaches deep into Europe. To handle the small-lot, high-frequency nature of cross-border e-commerce shipments, Urumqi Tianshan International Airport Customs has streamlined its supervision process, giving these consignments priority for inspection and rapid release and cutting overall clearance time to within 24 hours.

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