XI'AN — A new direct flight linking Xi'an, capital of Northwest China's Shaanxi province, with Aswan in Egypt will be launched on July 13.

The direct flight will depart from Xi'an every Thursday with a travel time of 10 hours.

It is operated by Egypt's Air Leisure airline using an Airbus A330-200.

The new air route connecting Xi'an, the starting point of the ancient Silk Road, with Aswan, a famous tourist city in Egypt, will help strengthen exchanges between the two cities and boost their economic development, said Xu Mingzheng, a Shaanxi tourism official.