Air China makes special pre-summit New York flight over objections of US aviation group
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A special Air China flight from Beijing reached New York over the objections of a trade association representing the biggest US airlines, according to a flight data tracker, and a second additional flight by the same Chinese carrier is being considered for Friday.
The flight took off from the Chinese capital around 4pm on Saturday and landed after 6pm local time the same day, according to global flight tracking and data platform FlightAware.
Flight 621 was the first US flight China’s flagship airline had proposed in tandem with President Xi Jinping’s state visit to the United States from Wednesday to Friday, independent aviation analyst Li Hanming said. He said the flight carried diplomats, business leaders and reporters from China.
Aviation regulators probably made no public announcements because the flight was for “diplomatic” purposes, Li said.