CIIE-themed airplane launched by China Eastern Airlines flies to 10 countries

SHANGHAI, Sept. 17, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The high-profile China International Import Expo (CIIE)-themed airplane will fly to Sri Lanka, the last destination of its global tour, on Sept. 18.

The plane will fly to Beijing Daxing International Airport on Sept. 25 to mark the first anniversary of the airport's operation.

The special CIIE-themed aircraft was jointly launched by China Eastern Airlines (CEA) and the CIIE Bureau on July 2 and made its maiden flight to Pairs one day later, marking the beginning of its global tour.

Serving as the image ambassador of the CIIE during its global tour, the aircraft will fly to 10 countries, including France, Canada, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, the United States, South Korea, Japan, Australia, and Sri Lanka, with a total range exceeding 100,000 kilometers.

Meanwhile, the CIIE-themed airplane has attracted great attention from international aviation enthusiasts for its gorgeous appearance and "Fly with CIIE" has become a hot topic on social media platforms.

A Boeing 777-300ER jet, which is CEA's international long-haul flagship aircraft with the largest passenger capacity, the longest range, and leading passenger service system, was chosen as the world's first CIIE-themed airplane.

The dominant tones of the colored aircraft were the shades of yellow and blue, which are also the theme colors of the CIIE. Besides, the CIIE's mascot panda "Jinbao" holding a four-leaf clover on the plane expresses good wishes to passengers from all over the world and promotes the CIIE's idea of openness and cooperation.

CIIE exhibitors from various countries expressed their expectations about the flight schedules of the plane after they were released.

Australian vitamin maker Blackmores has participated in the expo in the past two years and will take part in the third CIIE.

"It's a very important platform for international cooperation for all companies participating in the China International Import Expo. Encouraging exporters and importers to share some innovations and new products is also important," said the company's CEO Alastair Symington, expressing his expectation to attend the third CIIE in Shanghai.

Besides, CEA launched full-process featured services such as CIIE-themed passenger entertainment system, broadcast and boarding passes, and given a CIIE-themed makeover at overseas airports including CIIE mascot dolls, CIIE-themed airplane models, and billboards of the aircraft's global tour, providing an immersive experience for passengers. A large number of passengers stopped to take pictures.

CEA also chose the digit 115 as a lucky number, which indicates Nov. 5, the opening day of the expo, to present CIIE souvenirs to the passenger with the check-in serial number of 115 on the airplane's each flight.

The CIIE-themed plane will fly to Beijing Daxing International Airport on Sept. 25 to mark the first anniversary of the airport's operation. It will also continue its domestic tour in major cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Xi'an, and Kunming to support local governments and enterprises in attending and publicizing the CIIE. The plane will mainly operate flights between Beijing and Shanghai during the third CIIE from Nov. 5 to 10.

As the seventh-largest airline in the world and the largest main base airline in Shanghai, the host for the CIIE, CEA will play multi-roles of a sponsor, carrier, purchaser, and service provider.

CEA will seize the opportunities brought by the expo to realize "purchasing, flying and serving worldwide." It will continue to optimize the external cooperation of the aviation industry chain, serve the expo, and inject new vitality and new impetus into the internationalization strategy and high-quality development of enterprises for mutual benefits.