A Boeing 777 cargo plane took off on January 29, 2026 from Huahu International Airport in Ezhou, Hubei Province, bound for King Khaled International Airport in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, marking the official launch of a regular direct route between the two cities.
This is the first dedicated cargo airline route connecting Hubei to the Middle East opened in 2026. Operated with Boeing 777-200F cargo aircraft, the route will offer four weekly flights, with a maximum delivery capacity of nearly 100 tonnes per flight. The annual freight throughput on this route is expected to reach approximately 10,000 tonnes.
Over the past year, Huahu International Airport's cargo and mail traffic totaled more than 1.47 million tonnes, maintaining its position as number one in central China and number five nationally for the second consecutive year. (en.hubei.gov.cn)、