Austrian Airlines has added another North American destination to its flight schedule, with the departure of its first flight to Chicago.

Flights will leave for Chicago five times a week on a Boeing 767, which will be equipped with the new long-haul cabin.

Julian Jäger, chairman of the executive board of Flughafen Wien, the US ambassador to Austria William Eacho, and Austrian chief commercial officer Karsten Benz welcomed the first passengers onto the flight earlier, and celebrated the opening of the new route.

The new route means Austrian Airlines will be offering a total of 26 non-stop flights a week to North America, including daily flights not just to Chicago and New York on a Boeing 777, the largest long-haul aircraft in the Austrian fleet, but also daily flights to Washington and Toronto on a Boeing 767.