China Eastern Airlines (CEA) flight MU5063 departed from Xi'an Xianyang International Airport for Vienna, the capital of Austria, on April 20. This marked the launch of CEA's direct international route between Xi'an and Vienna, making it the first direct air route connecting Northwest China with Austria.

Flight crew celebrates the launch of the route. [Photo/Xi'an news network]

The route is operated by an Airbus A330 wide-body aircraft with 263 seats, including 18 in business class and 245 in economy class. It is well-equipped to meet the travel needs of both business and leisure travelers, with high-quality service provided throughout the journey.

The route operates three flights per week — on Mondays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. Outbound flight MU5063 departs Xi'an at 1:30 am and arrives at Vienna Airport at 6:10 local time, with a flight duration of 10 hours and 40 minutes. The return flight MU5064 departs Vienna at 1:30 pm local time and arrives in Xi'an at 5:50 am the next day. This schedule offers an efficient and convenient option for trans-Eurasian travel.

The route is operated by Airbus A330 wide-body aircraft. [Photo/Xi'an Daily]

In the first quarter of this year, Xi'an Xianyang International Airport handled a total of 83,000 flights, 11.99 million passenger trips, and 85,500 metric tons of cargo and mail, representing year-on-year increases of 2.3 percent, 3.5 percent, and 16.2 percent, respectively, and fulfilling 24 percent, 23.2 percent, and 22.4 percent of its annual targets accordingly.

The launch of the Xi'an-Vienna route marks an important step for CEA in improving its intercontinental route network from Xi'an. To date, CEA has opened 16 international routes at Xi'an Xianyang International Airport, connecting 14 cities worldwide.

Relying on its expanding international route network, CEA is promoting the high-quality development of civil aviation in Shaanxi province, working with all parties to build a more convenient and efficient air transport environment, and advancing the development of an international aviation hub serving the Belt and Road Initiative.