Port of Seattle Welcomes Hainan Airlines

Nonstop Flights from Seattle to Beijing Scheduled to Begin in June

The Port of Seattle announced today that Hainan Airlines will offer nonstop service between Seattle and Beijing, serving Seattle-Tacoma International Airport beginning June 9, 2008. Sea-Tac Airport will be the first United States destination served by Hainan Airlines.

"The Puget Sound region is a key trading partner with China," said Port of Seattle Commission President John Creighton. "Hainan Airlines' nonstop service to Beijing will continue to promote our region's business, tourist and cultural connections to the world's fastest growing economy."

It's estimated that more than 75,000 passengers travel to and from China through Seattle each year without the benefit of nonstop service - the addition of nonstop service from Sea-Tac Airport is expected to stimulate even more travel between the two. Through its extensive network in China, Hainan Airlines will connect Seattle travelers to more than 40 Chinese cities, including the capitals of each province.

"Traffic to and from China is the fastest growing international market in Seattle, with traffic to China increasing 12 percent a year" said Port of Seattle CEO Tay Yoshitani. "Our region's global businesses have wanted this kind of direct connection to China, and we are only now beginning to see what the tourism element will be."

"The Port has worked with community and state leaders for more than five years to bring about non-stop service between Seattle and Beijing," said Sea-Tac Airport Managing Director Mark Reis. "We are really looking forward to the benefits this will provide to our region."

This is the fifth airline to announce new international service to Sea-Tac in the last year. In 2007, Air France started nonstop service to Paris and AeroMexico began nonstop service to Mexico City. New airlines scheduled to begin in 2008 include Lufthansa nonstop service to Frankfurt, beginning March 30, and Northwest Airlines nonstop service to London, beginning June 1.

Hainan Airlines will initially offer nonstop service aboard an Airbus A330-200; the airline has ordered Boeing 787s and will begin flying that aircraft on this route as soon as it is available. Hainan Airlines began operating in 1993 and is the largest private airline in China; it's the fourth largest air carrier in China.