A new passenger air service between China's high-tech Optics Valley and Silicon Valley has begun, with a flight operated by China Eastern Airlines landing in San Francisco before returning to Wuhan.

The Airbus 330-200 aircraft arrived at San Francisco International Airport on Friday morning, completing the 13-hour first leg of its journey - just the start of many exchanges, China Eastern hopes.

Wuhan, the capital of central China's Hubei province and the center of design and manufacturing in the Optics Valley, sent several trade delegations to Silicon Valley last year, resulting in nearly $2 billion in signed deals.

Dong Bo, China Eastern's chief marketing officer said the carrier had planned for years for a San Francisco route. He said the flights, which stop in Shanghai en route to California, would facilitate cross-border commerce involving the two technology centers and China's biggest city.

"Our new service will deepen the relationship between Wuhan, Shanghai and San Francisco, which will help promote trade and personal exchanges between the United States and China," Dong said.

Mark Chandler, director of international trade and commerce for the San Francisco mayor's office, passed on congratulations from Mayor Ed Lee and expressed high hopes for the new air route.

"It's going to be beneficial for all kinds of new ties between the US and China, especially economic and business ties," he said. "Even more importantly, we will see more people, such as tourists and students, going back and forth just because it's easier."

Chandler also said the traveling public would benefit from the additional competition from China Eastern's new route.

The airline has been selling tickets at promotional prices as low as 2,300 yuan ($389) for a round trip in May. Business-class fliers who pay full price for a ticket get a second one free.

"That's why we are so happy to welcome China Eastern today," the city official said. "With this flight, we hope that maybe in the future we will see more flights from them and other Chinese carriers. The more direct connections, the more things happen between our two peoples."

Chandler said his numerous trips to China have included China Eastern's Los Angeles-Shanghai route.

"Now I have the opportunity to fly from where I live, so I'm sure it will be a very viable option for us," he said.

So far in 2013, China is the fifth most popular destination among travelers flying out of San Francisco, according to the San Francisco Travel Association.

Joe D'Alessandro, the association's president and CEO, said China Eastern's new service will help boost tourism and other industries.

"The more direct nonstop services we have, the more ability we have to welcome many more visitors," he said. "We have seen percentage growth from China far higher than percentage from Europe. So if we continue to get new services, we believe the number for China will grow to be one of the top two or three markets for San Francisco."

The Shanghai-based carrier now has daily services to and from five North American cities - New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Honolulu and Vancouver.

The Wuhan-Shanghai-San Francisco route features Airbus 330-200 ER aircraft, which can accommodate 30 seats in business or first class, and 204 in coach or economy class. Each business-class seat reclines to a flat position, and every economy-class seat has its own video monitor, Dong said.

Doug Yakel, a spokesman for San Francisco International, said the new service will be good for the airport's bottom line and for businesses on and off the premises. It also will create jobs at the airport.

"When we evaluate service, we look at the economic potential," he said. "Every new airline flight from Asia represents tens of millions of dollars in additional annual revenue."

Contact the writers at chenjia@chinadailyusa.com and yuwei12@chinadailyusa.com

Zhang Qidong contributed to this story.