China Eastern Airlines has launched a new regular flight between Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport and Shenzhen Bao'an International Airport starting Sunday. Operated by the C919, it is the 13th commercial route serviced by China's first self-developed narrow-body aircraft by the Shanghai-based carrier.

According to the schedule, the airline is expected to take delivery of another 10 C919 aircraft this year, bringing its fleet size to 20.

As the first global customer of C919, China Eastern has purchased a total of 105 C919 aircraft from the jetliner's manufacturer Commercial Aircraft Corp of China (COMAC), and the Shanghai-based airliner currently operates the largest C919 fleet of 10 jets. China Eastern is about to celebrate the second anniversary of the C919's maiden commercial flight at the end of this month. The carrier conducted the maiden commercial flight between Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport and the Beijing Capital International Airport on May 28, 2023.

With the launch of this new flight, China Eastern's C919 fleet currently services 11 cities: Shanghai, Beijing, Chongqing, Chengdu of Sichuan province, Xi'an of Shaanxi province, Guangzhou of Guangdong province, Taiyuan of Shanxi province, Wuhan of Hubei province, Shenyang of Liaoning province, Shenzhen and Hong Kong.

As of Sunday, China Eastern's C919 fleet has safely conducted more than 10,000 commercial flights and completed more than 1.5 million passenger trips.