This paper investigates the temporal and spatial distribution characteristics of connecting time for Air China’s connections at its hub airport–Beijing International Airport (PEK) for domestic to international connecting flights. Three indicators, i.e., maximum connecting time, feeding ability and feeding utilization index,were proposed to characterize the indirect connections. A multivariate regression model was further established to study their impacts. The result shows that the threshold of maximum connecting time varies among different regions. Meanwhile Air China does not fully explore the nonstop flights of origin airports when creating indirect connections. The model shows that factors representing the characteristicsof connecting time have significant impacts on the number of indirect flights. The results will provide a theoretical basis for Chinese full-service carriers to build wave-system structureintheir hub airports.