WUHAN, June 17 (Xinhua) -- China Southern Airlines will resume passenger flight services between central China's Wuhan, Hubei Province, and Istanbul, Turkey starting June 29, according to the company's branch in Hubei.

A round-trip flight, operated by a Boeing 787 aircraft, is scheduled every Wednesday. The outbound flight is scheduled to leave Wuhan at 4:05 p.m. Beijing time and arrive in Istanbul at about 9 p.m. local time.

The return flight will take off from Istanbul at 11:20 p.m. local time, and then arrive in Wuhan at 1:20 p.m. Beijing time the next day.

The flight will be China Southern Airlines' first international passenger flight to resume in Hubei since the outbreak of COVID-19. With the alleviation of the COVID-19 pandemic worldwide, the airline is expected to resume and launch more international air routes in Wuhan.

The Wuhan-Istanbul air route, launched in May 2019, was the first direct flight to Istanbul in central China.