BEIJING, Sept. 15 -- China is preparing to handle 1.96 million domestic air passenger trips each day during the upcoming eight-day National Day and Mid-Autumn Festival holiday, up 17 percent from the figure recorded for the same holidays in 2019, the Civil Aviation Administration of China said on Friday.

There will be 14,000 domestic flights each day of the holiday, which starts on Sept. 29, up 18 percent from the 2019 level, administration official Jin Junhao told a press conference.

It is estimated that over 21 million people will travel by plane either domestically or internationally over the eight days, reflecting robust demand for holiday trips, Jin said, citing presale data.

The administration said it is working on resuming international passenger flights. Currently, the number of weekly international passenger flights is at 52 percent of the 2019 level, the administration said.

The numbers of flights to 14 countries, including the United Kingdom, Italy and the Maldives, have surpassed pre-COVID figures, it said.