The first non-stop flight route linking Fujian province with North America launched on Monday.

The Xiamen-Vancouver flight will be serviced by a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner. It will fly from Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport to Vancouver International Airport.

According to Sunnews.cn, the 236-seat aircraft carried 213 passengers in the route's maiden voyage.

The opening of the direct route means that its operator, Xiamen Air, is the fifth Chinese airliner to fly to Vancouver International Airport (YVR), according to the airport's CEO, Craig Richmond.

The Xiamen-Vancouver direct route is Xiamen Air's fourth intercontinental air route starting from Xiamen. It follows the Xiamen-Amsterdam route opened in July 2015, Xiamen-Sydney route opened in November 2015 and the Xiamen-Melbourne route opened in June.

Now Xiamen is linked to 108 domestic and overseas destinations via 181 air routes, including 29 international routes.

Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport handled 11 million passengers in the first half of year, with the overseas passenger number growing 11 percent from last year to reach 1.5 million.

Passengers board the maiden flight of Xiamen-Vancouver route at Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport in Xiamen, Fujian province on July 25. [Photo from Sunnews.cn]