According the French publication Air Journal, Air China will begin flying to Havana from Beijing at end of December in a continuation of an existing flight to Montreal.
Air China is the first Chinese airline to fly to Cuba.
The Cuban capital will be its ninth destination in North America after New York-JFK, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Houston, Washington, Honolulu and Vancouver, and Newark.
As of December 27, 2015, the Chinese flag carrier will offer three weekly flights between Beijing and its base airport in Havana Jose Marti, operated by Boeing 777-300ER. The aircraft can accommodate 8 passengers in First Class, 42 in Business Class and 263 in Economy.
Departures are scheduled Tuesday, Friday and Sunday. The return flights are scheduled for Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
The Chinese airline announced the Star Alliance destination in January, but did not have details of the flights to Cuba until this week. Air China has a coding sharing arrangement with Air Canada, and the two airlines are planning to create a joint venture to expand marketing and revenue sharing on transpacific routes.
“Over the past five years, traffic between China and Canada has increased by 11% every year, and this trend is expected to remain strong, “explains Song Zhiyong, CEO of Air China, last December.
