United Airlines lands in HCM City

United Airlines flight 869 arrived in HCM City from San Francisco (with a stopover in Hong Kong), the first direct flight from the U.S. in 30 years. The Boeing 707 jet was packed with 300 passengers, many of them Vietnamese Americans, also some local officials from San Francisco, actor David Hasseloff, who brought with him wheelchairs for disabled children, and about a dozen reporters who joined the flight in Hong Kong. Officials from San Francisco International Airport and United Airlines said they hope to expand air traffic with Vietnam. (San Francisco Chronicle Dec. 12).