Direct flights between India and China have resumed after a five-year break, marking a further sign of thawing relations between the world's two most populous countries.

Flight 6E1703 from Kolkata landed in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou in the early hours of Monday, according to flight tracking data.

The aircraft, operated by Indian low-cost carrier IndiGo, took around three and a half hours to complete the journey.

For the past five years, passengers traveling between the two countries have had to change flights in third countries, after direct flights were initially suspended in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The suspension then continued for political reasons following a deadly clash between Chinese and Indian soldiers in a disputed Himalayan border region.

The confrontation brought ties between the two nuclear-armed neighbors to a low point. The resumption of direct flights is seen as another sign of a gradual thawing of relations between the world's two most populous countries.

Additional routes, including between Shanghai and New Delhi, are expected to launch from early November, with multiple flights scheduled every week.

China and India agreed in principle to resume direct flights during talks in Beijing in January.