China Eastern Airlines (CEA) officially started flying twice daily between Vancouver and Shanghai on July 20.
The airline bumped its flights up to 13 per week from daily on June 21.
It had been running short on aircrafts because it recently increased its flights to San Francisco – a route that borrowed some aircraft from the Vancouver route.
CEA has yet to determine if the increased flights will be seasonal or permanent but its expansion is part of a trend among airlines that fly direct between Vancouver and mainland China.
Direct flights between Vancouver and various Chinese cities will be up 50% this summer compared with summer 2012, as each of the five airlines that service the routes increase frequency, Business in Vancouver reported in June.
Other increases include:
- China Southern Airlines (CSA) in June permanently increasing its direct flights to Guangzhou to once per day, up from flying three times per week;
- Air China adding four flights each week between Vancouver and Beijing for a total of 11 weekly flights;
- Sichuan Airlines adding an extra flight throughout August for a total of four flights per week to Shenyang; and
- Air Canada adding four flights each week between Vancouver and Beijing for a total of 11 weekly flights.
Air Canada flies daily flights to Shanghai from Vancouver and is not altering that frequency.
Last summer, when airlines similarly added extra flights, there were a total of 36 flights between Vancouver and mainland China.
CEA's service increase is expected to generate the equivalent of more than 470 full-time jobs both at the Vancouver International Airport and at Metro Vancouver restaurants, hotels, shops and attractions.
Tourism Minister Shirley Bond told BIV last week that attracting more direct flights to Vancouver is one of her government's priorities.
"We've made a commitment to look at new international direct flights to B.C. with a goal of three more by 2014," Bond said.
See next week's edition of BIV for Q&A session with Bond on her priorities as jobs and tourism minister.
