Delta applauds President Obama on Chinese visa extension

Deal to extend visas for Chinese visitors will provide economic boost in U.S.

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Nov 10, 2014, 02:40 ET

ATLANTA, Nov. 10, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Richard Anderson, CEO of Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL) today praised President Obama for reaching an agreement with China to extend the validity of short-term visas for visitors between both counties for up to a decade.

"This agreement between the U.S. and China to extend short-term visas for travelers between the U.S. and China will provide a significant economic boost to the U.S., and is expected to create hundreds of thousands of jobs nationwide," Anderson said. "China is becoming an increasingly important travel and tourism partner with the U.S., and this is an essential step in ensuring that the United States receives the economic benefits."

The extension is a reciprocal agreement between the United States and China that will increase the validity of short-term tourist and business visas issued to each other's citizens from one to 10 years – the longest validity possible under U.S. law – and increase the validity of student and exchange visas from one to five years.

Last year, 1.8 million Chinese visitors came to the U.S., contributing $21 billion to the economy and creating 100,000 jobs, according to the administration. The visa extension is expected to more than quadruple those numbers.

Delta Air Lines serves nearly 165 million customers each year. This year, Delta was named the 2014 Airline of the Year by Air Transport World magazine and was named to FORTUNE magazine's 50 Most Admired Companies, in addition to being named the most admired airline for the third time in four years. With an industry-leading global network, Delta and the Delta Connection carriers offer service to 318 destinations in 58 countries on six continents. Headquartered in Atlanta, Delta employs nearly 80,000 employees worldwide and operates a mainline fleet of more than 700 aircraft. The airline is a founding member of the SkyTeam global alliance and participates in the industry's leading trans-Atlantic joint venture with Air France-KLM and Alitalia as well as a newly formed joint venture with Virgin Atlantic. Including its worldwide alliance partners, Delta offers customers more than 15,000 daily flights, with key hubs and markets including Amsterdam, Atlanta, Boston, Detroit, Los Angeles, Minneapolis/St. Paul, New York-JFK, New York-LaGuardia, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Salt Lake City, Seattle and Tokyo-Narita. Delta has invested billions of dollars in airport facilities, global products, services and technology to enhance the customer experience in the air and on the ground. Additional information is available on delta.com, Twitter @Delta, Google.com/+Delta, Facebook.com/delta and Delta's blog takingoff.delta.com.