Hainan Airlines launches Shanghai-Seattle roundtrip flights

Hainan Airlines recently launched its flights to Seattle from Shanghai. The airline''s inaugural Flight  HU7955 arrived at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport at 9.35 am on June 22, 2015 and was accorded the customary water salute. Seattle will now become the airline''s seventh destination in North America.

Media reports said that Hainan Airlines has been expanding its network into North American market since 2008. The launch of flights between Shanghai and Seattle would provide even more flexible options to the travelers from U.S. and China than before.

Hainan Airlines will be serving Shanghai-Seattle route with the help of an Airbus A330 aircraft, configured in two class. The aircraft has a carrying capacity of a total of 260 passengers. The aircraft will be offering 18 seats in business class and 242 seats in economy class.

Travel experts said that the launch of flights by Hainan Airlines stands to benefit Alaska Air immensely. The trans-Pacific business of Alaska Air has now got a boost with the launch of new service by the Chinese carrier. The experts said that Hainan Airlines'' customers arriving at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport will also be able to conveniently connect to Alaska Air Group''s network as well.

Apart from Alaska Air, the Chinese carrier will be facing stiff competition from Delta Air Lines as well. Currently, Delta Air Lines is offering flights services to key Chinese cities Beijing and Shanghai from Seattle-Tacoma.  

Hainan Airlines decided to favor Seattle-Tacoma as its new North American gateway primarily because it is into partnership with Alaska Air for long. The airline said that Alaska Air has a better hub operation when compared to Delta Air Lines. This will be beneficial for its customers from China planning to connect to other U.S. cities via Seattle-Tacoma.