China is poised to launch a new air route between Shanghai and Argentina that will traverse 20,000 kilometres and span 25 hours, as the country’s trade and political ties with far-flung Latin America call for faster, more direct flights that skip stopovers in the United States or Europe.
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China Eastern Airlines has announced that an inaugural flight from Shanghai to Buenos Aires will take off on December 4, to cut travel time between China’s largest city and the Argentine capital by as much as five hours.
With only one transit stop in Auckland, New Zealand, the state-owned carrier said the new connection will be the most straightforward one between China and Argentina as well as neighbouring countries including Chile and Uruguay.
New Zealand will waive transit visa requirements for Chinese nationals passing through Auckland in the run-up to the launch of the Shanghai–Buenos Aires service. The measure is expected to strengthen the city’s role as a southern hub for travel between Asia and South America.
The coming service will be China’s first air route to Latin and South America via a stopover in the southern hemisphere, not through the US or Europe, which are usually congested with prolonged layover times, according to the carrier. Despite a brief landing in Auckland, China Eastern will operate the mammoth journey using a single aircraft under one flight number.
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“Passengers will save hours in transit and flying time … They will also arrive in Buenos Aires in better shape since they will hop across less time zones during the first portion from Shanghai to Auckland, helping them better adapt to time changes throughout the whole journey,” the Shanghai-based carrier said in a statement.