LOS ANGELES - Singapore Airline's historic inaugural non-stop flight from Singapore to Los Angeles left Singapore yesterday with 139 passengers and 18 crew members.
The passengers were treated to a reception at the gate in Changi Airport where Singapore's minister of transport Yeo Cheow Tong officiated.
Yeo said the launch of the direct services will help deepen economic ties between the two countries.
Referring to the Open Skies Agreement (OSA) signed between the US and Singapore in 1997 which allows carriers from each country to fly freely between the two countries, Yeo said the A345 has allowed Singapore to finally take full advantage of the OSA.
"With the A345, we can now fully utilise our OSA with the US. Changi Airport's position as an aviation hub has also grown, now that it can offer direct connections from this region to nearly all parts of the world without the need for an intermediate stop," said Yeo.
With the help of tailwinds, the inaugural flight took 14.5 hours, arriving Los Angeles nearly two hours early.