Sichuan Airlines launched its second air route to Los Angeles (LA) on the morning of December 6 from Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport with a stopover in East China's Jinan City.

The inaugural flight 3U8699, operated by an Airbus A330 aircraft, took off from Chengdu at 10:14 a.m. and arrived in LA at 10:06 a.m. local time, with a 2-hour stopover at Jinan Yaoqiang International Airport.

Sichuan Airlines started offering the Chengdu-Jinan-Los Angeles service twice weekly on Tuesdays and Saturdays. The outbound flight is scheduled to depart Chengdu at 9:25 a.m. and land in LA at 10:50 a.m. with a 2-hour stopover in Jinan, while the return flight 3U8700 will leave LA at 12:50 a.m. and reach Chengdu at 11:25 p.m. next day, with a stopover in Jinan.

It is Jinan International Airport's first direct flight to the United States. A single trip takes between 13 and 14 hours, at least three hours shorter than earlier non-direct service, said Xia Geng, vice governor of Shandong, at the launch ceremony.

Sichuan Airlines launched its first intercontinental service to Los Angeles, the U.S this October.

Besides, the Chengdu-based carrier is scheduled to introduce its first A350 XWB in 2017, which will be deployed on a new long-haul service linking Chengdu and New York next August.

In recent two years, the airline has stepped up expanding its international business and has launched services to Dubai, Melbourne, Moscow Tokyo, Osaka, Prague, Sydney, Tokyo, Vancouver and etc.