Hainan Airlines rounded out its ongoing international expansion in 2018 with the launch of a new non-stop service between Xian in China’s Shaanxi province and Los Angeles on December 31.
The new service, which is being operated by its Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner aircraft, currently only flies once per week on Thursdays, though a second Monday service is set to take off on March 4, according to the Hainan Airlines’ online schedule. The outbound HU493 flight from Xian (XIY) departs at 2110 and arrives in Los Angeles (LAX) the same day at 1810, while the return leg leaves LAX at 2320 and lands back at XIY at 0510 two days later.
Hainan Airlines has been aggressively expanding its long-haul network in recent years, notably launching non-stop flights to Los Angeles from both Chengdu and Chongqing in March 2017. These were followed by two services to New York, also from Chengdu and Chongqing, in October last year.
The Chinese carrier’s new route notably gives Xian a direct connection to California after United dropped its non-stop San Francisco-Xian flights back in 2017.
Hainan Airlines configures its 787-8 Dreamliner aircraft in a two-class format with 36 business class and 177 economy seats.
Business class on the 787-8 is laid out in a 2-2-2 configuration, meaning unlike the carrier’s newer herringbone seats on its 787-9 Dreamliners, window-seat passengers unfortunately do not have unhindered access to the aisles. Seats on the 787-8 offer between 74 and 80 inches of pitch (legroom) and are able to recline to a fully flat bed position. Each seat also has a 15.4-inch touchscreen in-flight entertainment (IFE) monitor and universal power ports.
Economy class on the 787-8, meanwhile, is laid out in a nine-across (3-3-3) pattern with seats offering between 30 and 31 inches of pitch along with a 10.6-inch touchscreen monitor.
Return business class fares are currently available from RMB 29,849 (US$4,344) including taxes and surcharges.
Business class passengers will also have access to Hainan Airlines’ new HNA Club lounge at Xian Xianyang International Airport, which opened in October 2017.
Hainan Airlines currently flies to a number of long-haul international destinations from Xian, notably Rome, Paris, Sydney and Melbourne.
