Travelers flying with Shenzhen Airlines’ Flight ZH9065 to Barcelona pose for a group photo at the Shenzhen airport before boarding. Courtesy of the airport
Flight ZH9065 operated by Shenzhen Airlines left Shenzhen at 12:05 a.m. yesterday, marking the official opening of the airline’s route to Barcelona, Spain.
This is the second route to Europe operated by Shenzhen Airlines after the route to London. The Barcelona route operates every Monday and Friday.
The flight was expected to arrive in Barcelona at 8:05 a.m. (local time) after a 14-hour flight. The inbound flight ZH9066 was scheduled to leave Barcelona at 11:30 a.m. and arrive in Shenzhen at 7 a.m. the following day.
This year is the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relationships between China and Spain, and the second anniversary of the friendly exchange city relationship between Shenzhen and Barcelona. The operation of the flight will further promote exchange and cooperation between the two cities in such areas as smart city, tech innovation, culture, tourism, commerce and trade, according to the airline.
So far this year, Shenzhen Bao’an International Airport had resumed and opened 18 international routes, and intensified 16 routes to 31 world cities. The 11 intercontinental routes connect Shenzhen with Los Angeles, Vancouver, London, Paris, Rome, Brussels, Moscow, Barcelona, Sydney, Auckland and Johannesburg.
The airport now operates about 500 international flights a week and serves about 300,000 international passengers a month. Between January and July, the airport recorded 29.08 million passenger trips, up 145% over the same period last year, and took the second spot among airports in China, according to the airport.