(Zhang Lu-jen, a pilot from Taiwan, celebrates his maiden flight at the Sichuan Airline  after landing at the Capital International Airport in Beijing on Tuesday, December 20, 2005. Photo: China Daily/newsphoto)

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A veteran pilot from Taiwan has completed a successful maiden flight according to a Xinhua news report. The plane has landed at the Capital International Airport in Beijing on Tuesday.

The pilot Zhang Lu-jen and seven other pilots from Taiwan have joined Sichuan Airline, the first mainland carrier to recruit Taiwan pilots.

Sichuan Airline president Mu Xinhong says the Taiwan pilots have an average of 15 years of flight experience and a record of 5,000 to 10,000 hours in the air. He feels this will make the local mainland airline more competitive.

(Zhang Lu-jen [R], a pilot from Taiwan, celebrates his maiden flight with the Sichuan Airline with mainland co-pilot Zhou Xiaojun after landing at the Capital International Airport in Beijing December 20, 2005. Sichuan Airline is the first in the mainland to recruit Taiwan pilots. Photo: China Daily/newsphoto)

Before his departure, Zhang Lu-jen had said he felt very proud to be the first Taiwan pilot for a mainland airliner.

President Mu Xinhong says recruitment marks a vital step in cross-Taiwan Straits aviation cooperation. Both sides can share their experience, promoting more exchange in the civil aviation sector.

Zhang Lu-jen and other Taiwan pilots have passed tests and obtained temporary pilot licenses from the mainland’s civil aviation authority, the CAAC.