Passengers aboard the mainden flight

People from the inland province of Sichuan have an obvious love for islands, and they have heard a lot about Thailand’s Phuket Island and Samui. However, in the past, they had to travel by air, bus and water for at least eight hours to reach Koh Samui from Chengdu. The long journey had deterred many tourists with a tight schedule.

On Sunday, a direct flight operated by Tibetan Airlines shortened the journey to 3.5 hours.

The flight, TV9897/TV9898, operates regularly on Tuesday, Friday and Sunday. It departs from Chengdu at 12:55 and lands at Samui at 15:40 local time. The return trip starts at 16:40 local time and ends at 20:55 Beijing time. The flight uses A319, an airliner, equipment with a powerful engine, a perfect communication system and the most advanced weather radar able to detect 3D weather information.

Samui Archipelago, consisting of about 80 islands of various sizes, is the third largest archipelago in Thailand. By making it easier for people to travel between Koh Samui and Chengdu, Tibetan Airlines’direct flight will boost friendly exchanges and cooperation in economy and trade, culture and tourism between the two places and increase the connectivity between Chengdu and scenic areas in other countries.

An official from Tibetan Airlines said the Chengdu- Samui direct flight is its first step in foraying into the international market and it is planning more international flights.