Officials at the Calgary Zoo are looking for alternative ways to get a family of hungry pandas their bamboo shipments this winter after it was announced a direct flight from Calgary to Beijing, China won’t be flying come October.
The Hainan Airlines flight launched in 2016 and has served as the source of multiple bamboo shipments each week for the four pandas since they arrived in Calgary last year.
According to the Calgary Airport Authority, Hainan advised YYC Calgary International Airport last week it was updating its schedule “based on operational capacity” and has since updated its website to show the flight is seasonal — ending at the end of October 2019 and picking back up again in March 2020. The airport authority said it was expecting a final decision by the end of September.
The zoo told Global News Wednesday it’s working with the airline to find other options.
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“The Calgary Zoo has multiple shipments of bamboo delivered to Calgary each week by Hainen Airlines for our four giant pandas,” director of marketing, sales and communications, Alison Archambault said.
“We are actively working with Hainen Airlines to determine alternate ways to get bamboo to Calgary from China and are hopeful that a resolution can be found.”
WATCH: Baby panda cubs could be born at Calgary Zoo as breeding season begins
The pandas are in Calgary as part of an agreement between Canada and China and are participating in a breeding program. Parents Er Shun and Da Mao arrived in Toronto in 2013 and soon after, the Toronto Zoo welcomed two cubs, Jia Panpan and Jia Yueyue.
The cubs are set to go back to China as part of the breeding program, whereas Er Shun and Da Mao will stay at Calgary’s Panda Passage.
Er Shun was inseminated at the Calgary Zoo earlier this year, and zoo officials are hopefully waiting to find out if she is pregnant.
The Calgary Airport Authority said the flight route is popular and has “consistently strong load factors and high demand from both Canadian and Chinese guests.”
Global News’ request for comment from Hainan Airlines was not returned.
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