Originally Posted by
csycsycsy
Will the new A350s IB just got help this along? BA's LHR-HND routing through the black sea doesn't look much longer if ex-MAD?
Over at the Japan board, there's a post showing an average of 430 Spanish visitors to Japan per day vs 356/day in 2019 so demand has picked back up (at least for now)
On the other hand, perhaps IB flying to DOH suggests not?
The Asian routes were never viable simply for Madrid residents visiting Japan / China (or the reverse). (anybody else in Spain is connecting, too, and that can still be done just as easily in any of the usual hubs)
The routes were about providing Asia to/from Central / South America connectivity that avoids the United States. (visas, hassle, etc.) With Zoom / pandemic changes taking a big chunk of that kind of business travel away, it might take awhile longer for the Asian routes to make sense again...