Air China was founded on July 1, 1988 built upon an existing foundation in China since 1955, and since then achieved a 52-year safety record. The International Civil Aviation Organization awarded an Honorary Medal in recognition of Air China's outstanding safety record. In addition, China's State Council and General Administration of Civil Aviation awarded Air China with the "National Safe Operation Pacetter" award.

In 1995, Air China was presented with the international "Five Star Diamond Award" by the American Academy of Restaurant and Hospitality Sciences for its achievement in flight safety, customer service, and quality operations. Among so many airlines in the world, Air China is the first one to have gained this honor. In the 1999 Brand Recognition contest in China, Air China ranked first place among airlines, which transport over 6 million passengers annually.

Seating assignments :  Please contact Air China directly at 1.800.986.1985 or 1.800.882.8122, Monday-Friday, 8:30am-5pm Pacific Time for assistance. You may also call either toll free number for special meal requests (such as vegetarian meals). If you would like to consider upgrading to business or first class for pricing, please call our office at 1.800.868.7244.

Although Air China is currently partners with United Airlines, group tickets DO NOT qualify for United miles because they are the lowest class fare available on Air China.

FOR CHECK-IN PROCEDURES AT SFO AIRPORT, CLICK HERE; FOR JFK AIRPORT, CLICK HERE.

         *** For your return flight from Shanghai ,your luggage will be checked through all the way from Shanghai to SFO/JFK .

A Brief Lesson on Understanding the Time Difference Once You Cross the International Dateline

• Pacific Standard Time: Add 16 hours to the current time to get the local time in China.
• Pacific Daylight Time: Add 15 hours to the current time to get the local time in China.

Example: If it is currently January 1st, 12:00pm (noon) Pacific Standard Time, the current date and time in China is January 2nd, 4:00am.

Guideline on Time Zones in the U.S.

Daylight Savings - From the second Sunday of March until the first Sunday of November
Standard Time - From the first Monday of November until the second Saturday of March

• Pacific Standard Time - 12:00pm; Daylight - 1:00pm
• Mountain Standard Time - 1:00pm; Daylight - 2:00pm
• Central Standard Time - 2:00pm; Daylight - 3:00pm
• Eastern Standard Time - 3:00pm; Daylight - 4: 00pm

An Easier Way to Remember This

• Spring Forward: +1 hour from Standard Time
• Fall Back: -1 hour from Daylight Savings Time