Hong Kong Airlines Flying to San Francisco

Hong Kong Airlines plans to begin flying to San Francisco on March 25, following up its U.S. debut with Los Angeles-Hong Kong flights in December.

The carrier will fly the San Francisco route four times per week on an Airbus A350 outfitted with 334 seats, including 33 lie-flat seats in business class.

Hong Kong Airlines will compete with United, Singapore Air and Hong Kong legacy carrier Cathay Pacific on the route.

The carrier also said it plans to launch service to the New York area sometime in 2018.

Hong Kong Airlines is creating more U.S. competition for struggling Cathay Pacific, which flies to Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, Chicago and Boston. During the first six months of 2017, Cathay lost $262 million.

Hong Kong Airlines launched its first transpacific route this year with the start of Vancouver service. Vancouver is one of two Canadian cities that Cathay Pacific serves.

Hong Kong Airlines was founded in 2006 and now serves about 30 destinations in the Asia-Pacific region.