Hainan Airlines announced Monday it will launch the only nonstop service from Los Angeles International Airport to inland China on Jan. 21.
The new route will connect passengers to Changsha, the capital of Hunan Province, and is part of Hainan’s large-scale expansion in North America.
On the west coast, Hainan already operates nonstop service between the Silicon Valley and Beijing, and from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport to Beijing and Shanghai.
The airline, a mileage partner with Alaska Airlines, also operates direct routes between Beijing and Chicago, Boston and Toronto, and between Shanghai and Boston.
All North American routes — including the new service between LAX and Changsha — are flown by Boeing 787 Dreamliners.
Los Angeles flights will depart from LAX Terminal 2 on Mondays and Thursdays at 12:35 p.m. and arrive in Changsha at 7:20 p.m. the following day. Return flights depart Changsha at 1 p.m. and arrive at LAX at 10:35 a.m. the same day. (LAX times will be one hour later after March 12 due to Daylight Savings Time.)
Hainan Airlines, billed as mainland China’s largest independent airline, was founded in 1993 and began service to the United States in 2008.
— Wire reports