China Eastern Airlines announced in Shanghai on Wednesday that it will open a new air route connecting Shanghai and London on April 1.

Officials said that the direct service run three times a week, on Monday, Thursday and Saturday.

Planes will leave at 03:30 GMT (13:30 Beijing Time) from Shanghai Pudong International Airport and arrive at London Heathrow Airport at 18:50 GMT. The return flight will take off at 21:20 GMT and arrive in Shanghai at 07:45 GMT (15:45 Beijing Time).

Airbus A340-600 and A340-300 models will fly the air route.

About 250,000 passengers travel by air between China and the UK,and many of them are business people and students. Shanghai is an important port for Chinese students heading for other countries and so far roughly 80,000 students went abroad from Shanghai.

The company is optimistic about the future of the air link between China and the UK, and will provide favorable policies for the student travelers, said officials with Eastern Airlines.

The Shanghai-based company now operates a flight to Paris and will resume its flight to Madrid on March 28 and open a route to Vancouver of Canada on June 26.

(Xinhua News Agency March 11, 2004)