New York welcomes Air China’s New-Generation B747-8 Intercontinental

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Written by Linda Hohnholz

NEW YORK, NY – Air China’s B747-8 Intercontinental debuts internationally on the Beijing-New York route on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2015. Expected arrival at JFK International is at 1:30 p.m.

NEW YORK, NY – Air China’s B747-8 Intercontinental debuts internationally on the Beijing-New York route on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2015. Expected arrival at JFK International is at 1:30 p.m. EST local time. A warm New York welcome awaits the B747-8i’s first international flight from Beijing, including an in-cabin reception hosted by Air China’s New York offices led by Mr. Yuelong Zhou, General Manager.

Air China’s Flights 981 and 982 will be operated daily by the new-generation B747-8i while Flights 989 and 990 continue to be operated by B777-300ER.

Air China is the launch carrier in Asia for Boeing’s newest wide body passenger aircraft. It is also the first in China to operate the B747-8i and the only airline with nonstop services between New York and Beijing.

“We are pleased that our Beijing headquarters has chosen New York for the international launch of the B747-8i. It is only fitting that the largest city in the United States is the first Air China gateway in North America to operate the fuel-efficient, environment-friendly B747-8i,” Mr. Zhou said.

“More importantly,” Mr. Zhou added, “the B747-8i is the first aircraft in Air China’s fleet with a four-cabin configuration. This is significant as this provides travelers from New York and other neighboring cities to China and beyond with more options.”

Air China’s B747-8i features 12 luxury suites in the Forbidden Pavilion first class cabin, 54 fully-flat sleepers Capital Pavilion business class, 66 premium economy seats and 233 in the economy cabin for a total of 365 seats.

The business class’ 180-degree flat-bed seats are split between the main deck and the entire upper deck, giving Air China’s guests an exclusive private space. The majority of the lie-flat sleepers are arranged in a staggered 2-2 configuration.

Seats in premium economy and economy cabins offer more legroom for maximum comfort. An enhanced entertainment system offers a wide array of user-friendly features, including mobile phone app icons and a sliding touch control.

Air China’s B747-8i is also the first to sport the company’s new cabin interior which depicts three traditional Chinese cultural elements that represent the harmonious unity of heaven, earth and sky.

Below is the seasonally-adjusted schedule of the of round-trip New York-Beijing services.

Flight Number Route Departure* Arrival* Frequency** Aircraft
CA 981 Beijing-New York 13:00 13:30 1234567 B747-8i
CA 982 New York-Beijing 15:50 18:20 + 1 1234567 B747-8i
CA 989 Beijing-New York 09:00 09:30 13567 B777-300ER

CA 990
New York-Beijing 11:50
14:40 + 1
13567 B777-300ER

*All times are local. The above schedule is for reference only and may be subject to change.
**1-Monday, 2-Tuesday, 3-Wednesday, 4-Thursday, 5-Friday, 6-Saturday and 7-Sunday

About the author

Avatar of Linda Hohnholz

Linda Hohnholz

Editor in chief for eTurboNews based in the eTN HQ.

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