Sichuan Airlines Launches First U.S. Service to Los Angeles
By Lena Ge, China Aviation Daily | Oct. 17, 2016
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Sichuan Airlines today officially launched its first intercontinental service to Los Angeles, the U.S.
The inaugural flight 3U8631, operated by an Airbus A330 aircraft with 223 passengers onboard, took off from Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport at 8:37 a.m.
The Chengdu-based carrier plans to operate the Chengdu-Hangzhou-Los Angles service twice weekly, using 298-seat two-class A330 aircraft. The outbound flight will depart Chengdu for Hangzhou and then continue to Los Angeles on Mondays and Thursdays, the airline said.
The trip from Chengdu to Los Angeles takes 17.5 hours, including a two-hour stop in Hangzhou. The return trip takes about 19.5 hours.
Los Angeles becomes Sichuan Airlines' first mainland U.S. destination. It also flies to the Pacific island territory of Saipan and the Canadian city of Vancouver.
In recent two years, the airline has stepped up expanding its international business and has launched services to Dubai, Melbourne, Moscow Tokyo, Osaka, Prague, Sydney, Tokyo, Vancouver and etc.
Specifically, Sichuan Airlines, rapidly building up a long-haul business, is scheduled to introduce the Airbus A350 into its fleet in 2017. It has signed agreements to lease three A350s from AerCap and one from Air Lease Corp. The airline plans to use the aircraft to expand its North American services.
Last year, China Eastern Airlines launched three weekly flights between Chengdu and LA, via Nanjing.
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