United Airlines has re-launched international service on the 787 Dreamliner with the inaugural flight from the airline’s hub in Denver to Tokyo-Narita International Airport.

The daily flight marks the Mile High City’s first non-stop connection to Asia, a highly anticipated milestone in Denver’s history.

“We share the excitement with the Denver community and want to recognise the efforts of city and state leaders who worked with us to make service to Asia from Denver a reality,” said Jim Compton, United vice chairman and chief revenue officer.

“The 787 is a revolutionary aircraft, and our customers are going to love the travel experience it provides.”

Together with its joint venture partner ANA, United will offer seamless connections at Narita to or from more than 18 destinations in Asia, including important business and trade destinations like Seoul, South Korea, Bangkok and Singapore.

“This new nonstop flight will be a gateway into Colorado for Japan and other Asian countries,” said Colorado governor John Hickenlooper.

“Already, Colorado is a top-five dream destination for people in the United States and we’d like to make it a top-five dream destination for Japan and throughout Asia.

“Japan is Colorado’s fourth-largest source of foreign investment, and we want to help companies expand by taking advantage of Colorado’s competitive business environment and highly educated workforce.”

Configured with 36 seats in United BusinessFirst, 70 seats in United Economy Plus and 113 seats in United Economy, the Dreamliner is revolutionising the flying experience for United customers and crews while delivering unprecedented operating efficiency, comfort and lower emissions.

Customers will experience greater comfort with improved lighting, bigger windows, larger overhead bins, lower cabin altitude and enhanced ventilation systems, among other passenger-friendly features.

United is the 787 North American launch customer and now has six Dreamliners in its fleet.

The airline has 55 Dreamliners on order and expects to take delivery of two more from Boeing in the second half of 2013.