A new market

Wooing air travelers from China is worth it

Amid the deepening trade war with China is this good news: Pittsburgh International Airport’s firstever commercial flight from China landed Friday in what officials hope will be the beginning of a fruitful long-distance relationship.

The airport’s recent success in landing commercial flights from Britain, Iceland and Germany and cargo flights from Qatar had obscured the fact that Pittsburgh had no nonstops to China, the world’s most populous country and, trade war aside, a lucrative market.

The China Eastern Airlines Flight that landed Friday was full, but the plane returned to China later in the day with plenty of empty seats. The other scheduled Shanghai-to-Pittsburgh flight is due to arrive Aug. 11. It also has empty seats, but the return flightthe same day is fully booked. The empty seats show that part of the relationship will be about educating travelers about all there is to see and do on each end of the route.

Pittsburgh International, VisitPittsburgh and the Idea Foundry, a nonprofit that encourages ties between China and Pittsburgh, jointly offered nearly $1 million to subsidize the flights. None beyond the four this year are guaranteed, but there’s hope that they’ll continue and lead to regular service. If Pittsburgh wants to be a globally important seat, it will need more contact with the Far East.