China Eastern Airlines' planes and crew, ready for the first
non-stop charter flights from the mainland to Taiwan Province over
Spring Festival, appeared before media on Wednesday in
Shanghai.
At the airline's maintenance base, flight attendants from the
Swallow Group dressed in traditional costumes and stood before the
A340-600 aircraft that will be used to transport Taiwanese business
people back home for the holidays.
Spring Festival, or the Chinese Lunar New Year, falls on
February 9 this year and is usually a time for family reunion.
Also making a debut were souvenirs the company has specially
prepared for the flights, including ceramic bowls and tigers and
perfume pouches.
The A340-600s were imported from European supplier Airbus over a
year ago. The plane, so far the longest passenger aircraft in the
world, is 74.8 meters long. Capable of accommodating 380
passengers, it is also amongst the largest of commercial jets.
The crew for the first flight will consist of the firm's most
outstanding pilots, company officials said, and General Manager Luo
Chaogeng will join them on the maiden flight.
According to a consensus reached on January 10, non-stop flights
between the mainland cities of Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and
Taiwan's Taipei and Kaohsiung will be in operation from January 29
to February 20.
In 2003, Taiwanese civil aviation airplanes were allowed to fly
to the Chinese mainland for the first time since 1949. However, the
flights had to make stopovers in Hong Kong or Macao on their way to
Shanghai or returning trips, and no mainland airlines were
involved.
(Xinhua News Agency January 27, 2005)
