Chinese carrier Hainan Airlines will launch direct flights from Manchester to Beijing next summer.
Details of the service are expected to be confirmed later today during a visit to Manchester by China’s president Xi Jinping. He will be accompanied by UK Prime Minister David Cameron.
Flights will start next June and tickets are already on sale on the Hainan website. Hainan currently flies from Beijing to continental Europe, but not to the UK.
Ambassador Liu Xiaoming told the Manchester Evening News that President Xi will attend the launch of the new flights, which will be the first from Manchester to mainland China, during his state visit.
