Update 10 August, 2017
It appears that it is happening, and starts 4x a week on Dec 18, 2017, with flights going Daily after Jan 14, 2018.
While putting together our listing for all LAX International Non-Stop / Direct Flights listing, we noticed some good news… It appears the A350 may be coming to LAX by the end of 2017, and a new carrier as well, Hong Kong Airlines.
Hong Kong Airlines (HKA) will most likely be departing via TBIT, like Hainan Airlines, both are owned by the Hainan Group. So hopefully HKA will launch with special fares in the same style as Hainan did in launching the Changsha and Chengdu routes . Also, of note, HKA just started (June 2017) Vancouver ~ HKG Daily flights and the introductory pricing was quite good (out of Hong Kong). Business Class Round Trip was just about $2100.00 USD, with Economy costing below $500.00 USD. So with luck, some good flight offers will be coming with the launch of the LAX~HKG.
And the A350 is a great plane… espeically for those flying coach. Airbus made this craft a bit wider than the 787 “Squeezeliner”, but not so wide that the evil airlines will try to add an extra seat… most are coming in the 3x3x3 with 18″ width, which is great news for longhaul economy flyers. And the seating appears in Business appears to be the B/E Aerospace Super Diamond, with a color scheme that will not please the Cathay die-hards for sure.
In the end, the more competiion on these Asia routes the better… Hong Kong Airlines is not a true Low Cost Carrier, but they do offer a discounted pricing in Hong Kong, and Hainan has done a good job keeping overall quality rather good. Add a brand new A350, and I am ready to go to Hong Kong anytime.
for more info: Hong Kong Airlines – Hong Kong site
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