Shenzhen Airlines, one of China's major private carriers, will launch a new service from the southeastern city of Fuzhou to Osaka in Japan from Sept. 10, a company official has said.

The direct flight will depart Fuzhou on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 10:55 a.m., arriving in Osaka the same day at 2:25 p.m. local time.

Return flights would operate on Monday, Wednesday and Friday afternoons, said Zhu Yixin, the airline's marketing manager.

The new service would be the first of its kind between Fuzhou, capital of Fujian Province, and Japan, said Xu Tiejun, vice mayor of Fuzhou.

"It will help facilitate economic and cultural exchanges between Fuzhou and Japan," he said, "Currently people in Fujian must go to Shanghai or Xiamen if they want to fly to Japan."

"In addition, new international air services will be launched soon between Fuzhou and Seoul, Tokyo and U.S. cities," he said.