{
  "id": 9977773,
  "title": "Why Xi’s flight from China to the US was hours faster than Trump’s in May",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/26/why-xis-flight-from-china-to-the-us-was-hours-faster-than-trumps-in-9977773",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-26T12:00:56.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Reuters Business via SCMP",
    "slug": "reuters-business-via-scmp",
    "url": "https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3368906/why-xis-flight-path-china-us-was-hours-faster-trumps-may"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "At a private tea session in the White House's Red Room, US President Donald Trump marveled at how quickly Chinese leader Xi Jinping had returned from his state visit, remarking on the speed of his flight. Xi explained that the time was due to the route taken, which included passing through Russia, Alaska, and Canada. Trump agreed, noting the efficiency of the journey. The tea session and a tour of American founding documents at the National Archives concluded Xi's three-day state visit to the United States, which mirrored Trump's trip to Beijing in May. Flightradar24 data showed Xi's aircraft landed in America around 5.40pm local time, after a 13½-hour flight from Beijing. In contrast, Trump's return flight from Beijing took nearly 16 hours. Chinese carriers can utilize a shorter route via Russian airspace for eight weekly round-trip flights to the US, while US carriers must circumvent Russian airspace due to Russia's ban in response to the Russia-Ukraine war, adding hours to their flights. Xi's aircraft, a modified Boeing 747, returned via the same route, taking around 15 hours. The Russian airspace ban has impacted the US civil aviation industry, causing concern over the imbalanced costs and reduced efficiency.",
  "summary": "Over a private tea session in the White House’s Red Room to mark the end of Xi Jinping’s state visit, US President Donald Trump struck a relaxed tone, marvelling across the table at how fast the Chinese leader had made the trip to America. “It’s a very fast plane … the fastest plane,” Trump said, in footage captured after the White House TV press pool resumed coverage following a court ruling…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 4,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "South China Morning Post",
        "title": "Why Xi’s flight from China to the US was hours faster than Trump’s in May",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/26/why-xis-flight-from-china-to-the-us-was-hours-faster-than-trumps-in",
        "published": "2026-09-26T12:00:56.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Ajel English",
        "title": "Xi, Trump stress importance of respect and fairness, says China",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/26/xi-trump-stress-importance-of-respect-and-fairness-says-china",
        "published": "2026-09-26T12:31:47.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "The Hill",
        "title": "Live updates: Trump attends Texas-Tennessee football game in Knoxville; US, China to cut tariffs on $30 billion worth of goods",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/26/live-updates-trump-attends-texas-tennessee-football-game-in-knoxville",
        "published": "2026-09-26T13:00:00.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}