
Kaohsiung, July 12 (CNA) A United Airlines plane made its maiden flight on Saturday from Kaohsiung International Airport to Narita Airport in Tokyo, on a new route launched by the major United States airline.
United Airline's flight UA 838 took off from Kaohsiung to Tokyo at 10:23 a.m., two minutes ahead of its daily 10:25 a.m. schedule.
Prior to making its first Kaohsiung-Tokyo flight, United Airlines UA 837 carried passengers from Narita Airport to Kaohsiung International Airport at 8:48 p.m. for the first time on Friday.
According to United Airlines, the route will be operated daily with the company's Boeing 737-800 model plane.
The daily flight has 166 seats available, including 16 business class seats.
With the daily route, Kaohsiung City Government said United Airlines on Saturday officially became the first American airline to establish a regular service out of Kaohsiung.
The government further added that the route connects Kaohsiung, Tokyo and San Francisco.
To celebrate the milestone, an event was held at Kaohsiung International Airport on Saturday, attended by the southern port city's mayor Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁), United Airlines' managing director of worldwide sales Marcel Fuchs and Neil Gibson, head of the American Institute in Taiwan's Kaohsiung branch.
In a speech, the Kaohsiung mayor praised the new route as benefiting the residents of the city by making it easier for them to fly to the U.S., as Tokyo is connected to major American cities.
Chen said that before the new route was introduced, people living in Kaohsiung who wanted to fly to the U.S. had to depart from Taoyuan in northern Taiwan.
In addition, Chen said that with the inclusion of United Airlines, Kaohsiung residents now have another option when considering trips to the popular destination of Tokyo.
On behalf of United Airlines, Fuchs said the U.S. airline is delighted to launch the route, adding that it is expected to greatly benefit tourism as it not only makes it easier for Japanese tourists to fly to Kaohsiung, but also for prospective travelers in Kaohsiung to easily transfer to the U.S.
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