BEIJING, March 7  -- China Eastern Airline will launch a direct flight connecting Nanjing, capital city of east China's Jiangsu Province, and Los Angeles on June 30, the carrier has said.

This will be the first air route linking Jiangsu Province, one of China's major economic powerhouses, with the United States.

Airbus A330 aircraft will fly every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, return to China on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, according to the airline.

A one-way journey will take about 15 hours.