BEIJING - China Eastern will begin direct flights between Shanghai and Toronto on June 25, saving five hours of flying time for passengers, the Shanghai-based carrier announced on Thursday.

An Airbus A340-600 will fly Shanghai-Toronto on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday, and Toronto-Shanghai on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday.

Compared with transferring via Vancouver, the direct flight will reduce the flying time to about 14 hours from the previous 19 hours.

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