HONG KONG AIRLINES ENTERS U.S. MARKET WITH LAUNCH OF NONSTOP SERVICE FROM LOS ANGELES ON DECEMBER 18

            (Los Angeles, CA – August 25, 2017) Hong Kong Airlines announces the debut of nonstop service between Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and Hong Kong International Airport (HKG) beginning December 18. The commencement of Los Angeles service marks Hong Kong Airlines’ entry into the Continental United States and further expands its network in North America. The addition builds off of the airline’s initial North American launch, which introduced daily service from Vancouver International Airport to HKG in June. 

“With the future launch of Hong Kong Airlines, Los Angeles and Asia continue to strengthen cultural ties and friendships that cross borders,” said Keith Wilschetz, Deputy Executive Director of Operations and Emergency Management at Los Angeles World Airports. “With more travelers going to Asia and Australia from LAX than any other U.S. airport, it is a reflection of its continued position as the Gateway to the Pacific.”

The airline will operate at Tom Bradley International Terminal (TBIT) and serviced by Airbus A350 aircraft­, the first one to land at LAX. Tickets are now available for purchase at www.hkairlines.com, with Business class tickets starting at $5,271.10* and Economy class tickets starting at $786.10*. Hong Kong Airlines’ Los Angeles route will provide U.S. travelers with greater access to Asia’s world city just in time to ring in the new year at Hong Kong’s legendary New Year Countdown, featuring stunning fireworks over Victoria Harbour. Travelers will also have greater access to Hong Kong Airlines’ network of more than 30 destinations in the Asia Pacific region.

             “Following the success of the Vancouver route, we are excited to launch our first route in the Continental United States and further expand our international network,” said George Liu, Chief Marketing Officer of Hong Kong Airlines. “By strengthening the connection between North America and our Asia Pacific destinations, we can provide more options for American business, leisure, academic, and family travellers.”

            With the launch of the new route, Hong Kong Airlines also forges new ties between “the two Hollywoods,” Los Angeles and Hong Kong. To celebrate this shared passion for entertainment and the arts, Hong Kong Airlines has chosen Jackie Chan, Hong Kong-born international icon, as an ambassador for the brand. In this role, Chan helps to share the news of the North American expansion with travellers and cultivate a global audience for the airline.

            “With more than 600,000 Americans travelling to Hong Kong so far in 2017, we feel partnering with Jackie Chan offers a timely opportunity to establish an East-meets-West, cross cultural connection for our customers, and it complements our truly Hong Kong brand as we expand globally,” added Liu. 

 The winter flight schedule for the Los Angeles, USA route is as follows* (All Times Local): 

 * Fares are inclusive of all taxes and surcharges subject to currency fluctuation. Other terms and conditions apply 

 ** Schedule and terminal details are subject to government approval 

 *** Flight number and schedule may change without prior notice   (NOTE TO EDITORS: See next page for links to downloadable media.)   

Multimedia Images and Videos for Press:

• Dropbox Hi-Res Imagery
• Where "Our 1st A350" Begins Video

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About Hong Kong Airlines

            Established in 2006, Hong Kong Airlines is a full-service airline firmly rooted in Hong Kong. It has grown remarkably in just eleven years with a wide destination network covering over 30 major cities across the Asia Pacific region, including Gold Coast, Auckland, Beijing, Shanghai, Taipei, Tokyo, Sapporo, Seoul, Bangkok, Bali and Okinawa. In June 2017, it extended its reach in North America with the launch of Vancouver route. Hong Kong Airlines has also signed agreements with 17 codeshare and 76 interline partners. The current operating fleet is made up of 33 Airbus aircraft, consisting of 29 passenger aircraft and 4 freighters. With an average age of around 5 years, Hong Kong Airlines operates one of the youngest fleets in the world. Hong Kong Airlines has been awarded the internationally acclaimed four-star rating from Skytrax since 2011. It was also the winner of Asia’s Leading Inflight Service in the 2015 World Travel Awards. 

About Los Angeles International Airport (LAX)

           LAX is the fourth busiest airport in the world, second in the United States, and was named Skytrax’ 2017 Top 10 Most Improved Airports.  LAX served more than 80.9 million passengers in 2016.  LAX offers 737 daily nonstop flights to 100 cities in the U.S. and 1,386 weekly nonstop flights to 88 cities in 44 countries on 73 commercial air carriers.  LAX ranks 14th in the world and fifth in the U.S. in air cargo tonnage processed, with more than 2.2 million tons of air cargo valued at over $101.4 billion.  LAX handled 697,138 operations (landings and takeoffs) in 2016. 

An economic study based on 2014 operations reported LAX generated 620,600 jobs in Southern California with labor income of $37.3 billion and economic output (business revenues) of more than $126.6 billion. This activity added $6.2 billion to local and state revenues and $8.7 billion in federal tax revenues.  The study also reported that LAX’s ongoing capital-improvement program creates an additional 121,640 annual jobs with labor income of $7.6 billion and economic output of $20.3 billion, $966 million in state and local taxes, and $1.6 billion in federal tax revenues.

            LAX is also the second most popular airport in the world to appear on Instagram according to wego.com. LAX is part of a system of two Southern California airports – along with Van Nuys general aviation – that are owned and operated by Los Angeles World Airports, a proprietary department of the City of Los Angeles that receives no funding from the City’s general fund.

For more information about LAX follow on Twitter

@flyLAXAirport , on Facebook at www.facebook.com/LAInternationalAirport , and on YouTube at

www.YouTube.com/laxairport1 .  Information about LAX’s ongoing multi-billion-dollar LAX Modernization Program, as well as tips and shortcuts to help navigate LAX during construction, are available