BEIJING, May 21 -- China's civil aviation sector handled 61.2 million passenger trips in April, up 0.4 percent year on year, data from the Civil Aviation Administration of China showed Thursday.

Domestic routes handled 54.41 million passenger trips last month, down 0.2 percent from a year earlier, while international routes handled 6.79 million passenger trips, up 5.8 percent year on year, according to the data.

In terms of cargo and mail transport, China's civil aviation sector handled 854,000 tonnes in April, up 6.9 percent year on year.

Cargo and mail volume on domestic routes reached 456,000 tonnes, up 2.1 percent from a year earlier, while that on international routes stood at 398,000 tonnes, up 12.9 percent year on year.