Direct flights connect Xi'an with Istanbul, Budapest, Nursultan

Passengers of the first flight of the Xi'an-Istanbul direct air route get off the plane at Xi'an Xianyang International Airport in Xi'an, capital of northwest China's Shaanxi Province, Dec. 30, 2019. Three round trips operated by Turkish Airlines are expected to be made between Xi'an and Istanbul, with inbound flights on every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and outbound ones on every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. (Xinhua/Shao Rui)

XI'AN, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) -- Three new direct air routes were opened on Monday linking northwestern Chinese city of Xi'an and Istanbul, Budapest and Nursultan respectively, according to Xi'an Xianyang International Airport.

The Xi'an-Budapest route, operated by Shanghai Airlines under China Eastern Airlines, is scheduled twice a week on Monday and Thursday, with return flights on the same day.

Three round trips operated by Turkish Airlines are expected to be made between Xi'an and Istanbul, with inbound flights on every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and outbound ones on every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.

Operated by Kazakhstan's SCAT Airlines, the air service between Xi'an and Nursultan runs twice a week on Tuesday and Saturday.

A total of 19 new air passenger routes were launched in 2019 by the Xi'an airport, which has 88 international air routes linking cities in 36 countries.