EVA Air unveils more Hello Kitty jets

EVA Airways’ new service coincides with Hello Kitty’s 40th anniversary

Taiwan’s second largest airline will launch the colourfully liveried Boeing 777-300ER between Taipei and Paris on October 29 following demand from European passengers to experience the plane that services the regular Taipei to Los Angeles route since September 2013.

The service coincides with Hello Kitty’s 40th birthday on October 30.

EVA Air will fly the Hello Kitty Hand-in-Hand jet on its regular schedule from Taoyuan International Airport to Paris’ Charles de Gaulle on Sunday, Wednesday and Friday, and return on Monday, Thursday and Saturday. It now operates a total of four weekly flights between Taipei and Paris.

The carrier uses the first themed long-haul Boeing 777 jet on three of its 17 weekly flights between the Taipei-Los Angeles service. It currently has five shorter range Airbus 330 Hello Kitty jets servicing routes within Asia.

Travellers from Vietnam can experience Hello Kitty flights to the US and Europe via Taipei.

Vietnam is viewed by EVA Air chairman Austin Cheng as a key market. The flagship carrier says it plans to serve the themed aircraft via Vietnam, but an exact date for the launch is being kept under wraps.

In an effort to meet rising demand, EVA Air has recently added more flights from Vietnam to the US and Canada through its hub in Taiwan.

The Ho Chi Minh City-Taipei route now provides twice daily flights and it links around 60 destinations worldwide, including Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, New York, Toronto and Vancouver.

EVA has also raised the frequency of its Los Angeles flights from 20 to 21 a week and San Francisco from 12 to 14, whereas both Toronto and Vancouver frequency has been increased to four flights a week. If the current Seattle and New York service is taken into account, EVA’s North America schedule has risen from 45 to 55 flights a week.

“We carry a lot of passengers on the North America-Taipei route. We’re trying to better serve them,” Cheng said, adding that EVA Air was going to launch new service to Chicago and Houston.

A majority of EVA Air’s regular passengers are business travellers from the US and Canada. EVA Air began its Vietnam service in 1992. Its Vietnam office in Ho Chi Minh City employs 60 staff and 200 Vietnamese flight attendants who fly together with passengers from Vietnam to the US and Canada.

The airline has teamed up with Japanese firm Sanrio to create the Hello Kitty livery and in-flight service items that reflect the spirit of the global village and friendship across all countries.

EVA Air operates 18 Boeing 777-300ER aircrafts. It plans to build its fleet to 30, adding four more by 2015 and another eight by the end of 2017. Its three newest 777-300ERs can carry 333 passengers each.

EVA Air boasts its safety among other carriers. It was rated by AirlineRatings.com, the world’s prestigious safety and product rating website, one of the top ten safest airlines for 2013 out of 448 reviewed airlines.