Austrian chancellor attends anniversary of flight to China

Visiting Austrian Federal Chancellor Wolfgang Schuessel attended in Beijing Wednesday celebrations marking the 10th anniversary of Austria Airlines' inaugural flight to China in 1995.

"The anniversary is of special significance to me," said the chancellor, who had taken the very inaugural non-stop Vienna-Beijing flight to visit China, then as the minister of economic affairs.

The chancellor said the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games would make China much opener to the world, and that Austria hoped to make its contribution to the process.

A country of 8 million people, Austria serves as an air transportation hub of Europe. The Vienna International Airport is one of Europe's most efficient airports which can handle passengers' transit procedures in a period as short as 25 minutes.

Since the Vienna-Beijing flight was opened, Chinese travelers can make a convenient stopover in Vienna before traveling to more than 70 others cities in western, central and eastern Europe.

According to Josef Burger, Austrian Airlines Group Chief Commercial Officer, the airlines now runs 11 flights from China to Vienna each week, with six departing from Beijing and the other five from Shanghai in east China. And the company hopes to open a new route linking Vienna to a third Chinese city.

In 1995, Austrian Airlines carried a total of 20,000 passengers on its China flights. The number has now risen by 10 times.

The flights were operated under a code-share agreement between Austria Airlines and Air China, China's leading international air carrier. The two companies signed a Freesale Agreement in October 2004.

Source: Xinhua