Direct passenger flights connecting Shanghai and India’s Delhi reopened on Sunday after a five-year suspension, with the inaugural service posting a passenger load factor above 95 percent.

China Eastern Airlines flight MU563, with 248 passengers on board, departed Shanghai Pudong International Airport at 13:02, making the carrier the first Chinese airline this year to resume China-India passenger services.

The route adopts an Airbus A330 wide-body aircraft and operates three round-trip flights each week on Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday.