Northeast China opens cargo charter air route to the U.S.

HARBIN, May 30 (Xinhua) -- A cargo plane from Los Angeles landed early on Tuesday in Harbin, a city in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, completing the first flight of a cargo charter project between the two locations.

According to China Southern Airlines, the new cargo route is meant to cater to Harbin's growing demand for foreign trade.

The 10,000-kilometer flight takes 11 and a half hours and uses a Boeing 777-200F cargo plane with a maximum load capacity of 105 tonnes.

Officials with the commerce department of Harbin said there will be one flight every week, and the cargo mainly consists of imports and parcels for cross-border e-commerce, such as furniture, maternity and baby products, and healthcare products.

Organic food and grain from northeast China will also be transported to the United States in the future, according to the department.