Airlines, companies unveil new routes, services

Hainan Airlines

Hainan Airlines said on Tuesday that it will open three direct flights to the US from June this year. The routes are from Beijing to San Jose, Shanghai to Boston, and Shanghai to Seattle.

The company said it will provide five weekly services on the route from Beijing to Silicon Valley hub San Jose, using Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft.

San Jose will be the carrier's fifth destination in North America, following Toronto, Seattle, Chicago and Boston, all departing from Beijing.

Alitalia

Alitalia, Italy's flag carrier, said on Tuesday that it will reopen direct routes from Milan, the second-most populous city in Italy, to Shanghai from May 1 this year, serving the Milan Expo 2015 which runs runs from May 1 to October 31.

From June 4 this year, the carrier will also restart the service from Rome to South Korea's Seoul Incheon, having suspended it for more than 20 years.

By the end of this year, the Italian airline will also resume direct flights from Beijing to Rome.

American Airlines

American Airlines said on February 2 that it will add six new routes to destinations in Mexico, the Caribbean and Latin America, further strengthening its position in these key markets.

A new service to Barranquilla, a city located in northern Colombia, will give customers another option when traveling in the region. The expanded service will also offer flights to Belize City, Belize; Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands; Guadalajara, Mexico; Managua, Nicaragua; and Monterrey, Mexico.

Cathay Pacific

Cathay Pacific Airways on February 3 announced an expansion of its presence in Europe with a new four-times-weekly passenger service to Düsseldorf beginning on September 1 (subject to government approval).

Düsseldorf will become the airline's second destination in Germany, after Frankfurt.

Korean Air

Korean Air said on February 4 that from February 25, it will change the current service on its Seoul Incheon-Milan-Rome-Incheon route, to provide direct flights to both Milan and Rome, offering three flights a week to each destination. The number of flights to Milan will increase to four times a week in March.

The Rome service will see Korean Air operating three times a week with B777-300ER aircraft for 291 passengers. Departing from Seoul Incheon every Wednesday, Friday and Sunday at 16:10, flight KE931 will arrive in Rome at 20:40 on the same day.

The return flight KE932 will depart Rome on the same days at 22:20, arriving in Seoul Incheon at 17:20 the next day.