China Airlines began service from Taipei to Seattle on July 14, 2024
Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) celebrated its 75th anniversary on July 9, 2024, followed by welcoming its fifth new international route this year, with China Airlines’ Taipei (TPE)-Seattle route just a few days later on July 14, using an Airbus A350-900.
The schedule is as follows:
SEA commenced flight operations on July 9, 1949. Things were a lot different back then – the general public was allowed on the ramp to view the aircraft, and the terminal was tiny compared to what it’s become.
A photo from opening day at SEA – Image: Port of Seattle
In 1949, the airport had eight gates and served 130,549 passengers that year. Fast-forward to 2024, and SEA has 89 gates and serves an average of 140,000 passengers every single day.
More interesting factoids: SEA’s first international service was with Japan Airlines in 1959. Today, there are 25 international carriers serving 33 global destinations.
A China Airlines A350 on final to SEA on a flight a few days after the inaugual – figured you’d enjoy seeing at least one photo that wasn’t backlit
Which nicely leads us back to … airplanes!
China Airlines inaugural TPE-SEA flight taxiing to the gate
China Airlines Cargo has long served Seattle; the recent inaugural passenger flight is the airline’s sixth North American destination, and its debut for passenger service to the U.S. Pacific Northwest.
The arriving aircraft received a traditional water-cannon salute from the airport fire department. The late-afternoon sun made for some interesting photo challengesOne of the two ARFF vehicles providing the saluteThe water arch formed a veil in front of the aircraftThe plane was still dripping water as it rolled up to the gate
China Airlines is the third airline to offer direct service to Taipei, competing for passengers with Delta Air Lines and EVA Air.
Workers performed a post-flight walkaround after the engines were turned off
It’s always a fantastic experience to get out onto the ramp for an aircraft arrival, especially an inaugural.
And congratulations to SEA for 75 successful years!
A Lufthansa A350 taxiing to the terminal at SEA on its inaugural flight from Munich
New route launches are always exciting, both for travelers wanting to visit the new location, and for we AvGeeks who get to cover the event itself.
On May 31, Lufthansa launched new nonstop service between Seattle and Munich, using A350s for the route. The airline already provides daily service between Seattle and Frankfurt, with that route having been established back in 2008; it is flown with A330s and A340s.
Flight LH488 arrived at SEA to a traditional water-turret salute from the airport fire department
The new service runs SEA-MUH as flight LH488 on Tuesdays, Fridays, and Sundays, departing at 6:50 pm and arriving in Munich at 1:45 pm the following day. The MUC-SEA leg is LH488, running every Tuesday, Friday, and Sunday with a 3:30 pm departure and a 4:59 pm arrival into Seattle.
Don Bunkenburg/Senior Director Sales USA Central, West & Central America Lufthansa GroupRick Duncan/SEA Airport Director, Aviation Business & PropertiesA traditional ribbon cutting was held at the departure gate
Being in the terminal with all my cameras, I couldn’t resist photographing other planes.
Speaking of Germany, Condor also had a plane at the gate for its daily service to Frankfurt
The Lufthansa inaugural marks the third new international service for SEA in 2024 (the first two this year were Hainan’s service to Chonqing and Alaska Airlines service to Toronto), bringing the total to 50 services to 33 international destinations on 25 different airlines.
One of SEA’s airport fire trucks arriving at the gate for the water-cannon salute
Two fire trucks were stationed at each side of the gate to provide an arch via their water cannons for the inaugural arrival.
D-AIXP touching down in Seattle on its inaugural flight from Munich
It was a beautiful day to be out on the ramp to document the arrival.
A Condor Airbus A330 with Mt. Rainier in the background.
It is one thing to smell jet fuel (which we did), but we also enjoyed the smell of burning rubber after each aircraft touched down. Most times I will use my longer lens when spotting at airports, but we were so close that I often had to swap out for my shorter one… and that is not a bad thing. I am by no means a professional photographer (I use auto mode, like a noob), but Francis is. So, here are some amazing photos, most taken by Francis, that we took during our little adventure…
Our flight from Keflavik to Seattle boarded via a proper jetbridge
The COVID-19 pandemic made for some mighty strange times. A January 2023 trip to Reykvavik with Icelandair marked my first time out of the United States since early 2020. I’ve been able to fly a lot domestically, but this would be the first time I’d get to use a passport in nearly three years, ending my longest international travel dry spell in decades. And, boy, was I looking forward to it, especially as Iceland is one of my very favorite destinations.
The trip was from Seattle to Keflavik on TF-FIN, a 25-year-old Boeing 757-200, a jet Icelandair has owned since it was built back in 1998.
Icelandair seems to work hard to keep its aircraft interiors in good shape; I’ve flown with them roughly 10 times in both Saga and economy, on their 737 MAX-8, 757-200, and Bombardier Dash-8s, and don’t recall having seen anything in the cabins that was in desperate need of repair.
Air Tahiti Nui’s 787-9 Deamliners will fly the new route between Seattle and Papeete
Air Tahiti Nui launched service to Seattle on October 5, 2022, offering twice-weekly direct service to Papeete on Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners.
“North America is a key market for our destination. So, when we decided to open a second gateway on the West Coast, Seattle was a natural answer for us,” said Air Tahiti Nui Managing Director Mathieu Bechonnet. “I would like to thank our partners at Alaska Airlines and the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport for their warm welcome and support in making this happen.”
The inaugural flight was greeted with a traditional water-cannon salute from the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport Fire Department. The aircraft can be seen passing beneath SEA’s recently-opened pedestrian skybridge linking the S Gates to the new international arrivals hall.
The airline and airport hosted a gala-like arrivals ceremony complete with the requisite speeches, gift exchange, and traditional dancers.
Dancers performed to traditional Tahitian music
The 4,785-mile flight’s scheduled duration is eight hours and forty-seven minutes, which takes a bit less time than the 4,800-mile flight from Seattle to London.
