Domestic C919 performs scheduled commercial flight from Guangzhou to Qingdao for the first time

China News Service, Guangzhou, September 29 (Reporter Guo Jun) At 16:57 on September 28, China Southern Airlines (hereinafter referred to as "China Southern") flight CZ3573 carrying 120 passengers took off from Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport to Qingdao Jiaodong International Airport. This was the official first flight of the C919 domestic large aircraft on the Guangzhou-Qingdao route, and the first time it performed regular commercial flights at Qingdao Jiaodong International Airport. It marked that domestic large aircraft officially joined the air channel operation between the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and Jiaodong Economic Circle.

China Southern Airlines officially launched the Guangzhou-Qingdao route. Photo courtesy of China Southern Airlines

The outbound flight, CZ3573, is scheduled to take off from Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport at 16:50 and arrive at Qingdao Jiaodong International Airport at 19:50; the return flight, CZ3574, is scheduled to take off from Qingdao Jiaodong International Airport at 20:50 and arrive at Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport at 00:20 the next morning. Subsequently, China Southern plans to use C919 to perform one round-trip flight every day from October 1. The specific time is subject to the official website.

Qian Yining, captain of the first flight and C919 fleet manager of China Southern Airlines Flight Group, said: "This flight is the 19th route of China Southern Airlines C919 from Guangzhou, and it is also the first route of China Southern Airlines C919 from Guangzhou to Shandong. It marks the further expansion of the domestic large aircraft's main route network from the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area to Jiaodong area, and builds a more convenient and efficient air bridge for passengers from the two places."

Currently, China Southern Airlines has 13 C919 domestically produced large aircraft, which have carried out nearly 16,000 flights and transported nearly 2.2 million passengers. As the C919 fleet continues to grow, China Southern Airlines has concentrated its C919 aircraft on major routes from Guangzhou to Beijing Daxing, Shanghai, Wuhan, Nanjing, Ningbo, Xi'an, Wenzhou, Hefei, and Qingdao, and gradually expanded the route operation network of this aircraft type on this basis. (over)