Dragonair celebrated the launch of direct non-stop services to Jeju, South Korea with a ceremony held on 21 May. Around 150 guests, including government officials and business partners, attended the event in Jeju hosted by the airline's Chief Executive Officer Patrick Yeung.

Officiating at the event were guests-of-honour Mr Hyung-sun Kim, Vice Governor for Administrative Affairs of Jeju Special Self-Governing Provincial Government, and Mrs Sharon Yip, Deputy Secretary for Transport and Housing of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

Dragonair's first flight from Hong Kong to Jeju took off on 1 May. The thrice-weekly service, operated by A320 aircraft, is the only direct non-stop service between Hong Kong and Jeju.

Speaking at the event, Dragonair CEO Patrick Yeung said: "The new Jeju service not only provides more choices and greater convenience to travellers, but also connects Jeju to the worldwide network of Dragonair and sister airline Cathay Pacific through our sophisticated Hong Kong hub.

"2012 is an exciting year for Dragonair as we launch and resume six destinations. Apart from Jeju, we have resumed services to Xi'an, Guilin and Taichung. We will commence services to Clark in the Philippines later in the month and Chiang Mai in July. Dragonair's network will then be expanded to 39 destinations in the Asia-Pacific region, further strengthening Hong Kong's status as an international aviation hub," added Mr Yeung.

Mr Hyung-sun Kim, Vice Governor for Administrative Affairs of Jeju Special Self-Governing Provincial Government, said: "The inauguration of this service is especially meaningful because it enables Hong Kong tourists to fly direct to Jeju in just three hours. It presents us with a wonderful opportunity to promote our natural volcanic wonders that are recognised by UNESCO to the Hong Kong market. We will do our utmost to provide infrastructure of the highest standard to meet the needs of Hong Kong's travel-savvy tourists."

Mrs Sharon Yip, Deputy Secretary for Transport and Housing of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region said: "Dragonair's new service does not only give an additional lift to tourism and trade between Jeju and Hong Kong, but further enhance Jeju's connectivity with the rest of the world. We will continue to support Dragonair's efforts in launching additional services to new destinations or increasing its frequencies on existing routes to provide better connectivity to the travelling public."

The new Jeju service further enhances Dragonair's commitment to the Korean market. The airline started flying between Busan and Hong Kong in 2007, and this is now served by a daily flight. Together with sister airline Cathay Pacific's services to Seoul, the Group now operates 45 passenger services out of South Korea every week.

Dragonair CEO Patrick Yeung (centre), Guests-of-honour Mr Hyung-sun Kim (fourth from left), Vice Governor for Administrative Affairs of Jeju Special Self-Governing Provincial Government, Mrs Sharon Yip (fourth from right), Deputy Secretary for Transport and Housing of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, are joined by other honourable guests and the Dragonair management team in making a toast to the successful launch of the Jeju service.

Dragonair CEO Patrick Yeung (centre) presents souvenirs to Mr Hyung-sun Kim (left), Vice Governor for Administrative Affairs of Jeju Special Self-Governing Provincial Government, and Mrs Sharon Yip (right), Deputy Secretary for Transport and Housing of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, to thank them for their support of Dragonair's Jeju service.

Dragonair, an affiliate member of oneworld, is a Hong Kong-based airline operating a fleet of 35 passenger aircraft and serving 37 regional destinations, including 19 cities in Mainland China. Dragonair has been recognised for its product and service quality, and was voted for two consecutive years "World's Best Regional Airline" in the annual World Airline Survey run by Skytrax in 2010 and 2011. Dragonair is part of the Cathay Pacific Group, providing seamless connectivity for passengers to more than 160 cities around the globe.

Note to editor: High-quality photos are available for download from www.dragonair.com, under About Dragonair / Media Centre.

Dragonair web site address: www.dragonair.com