SHANGHAI - Passengers arriving at the city's airports will from next week be given an introduction to this East China metropolis in the local dialect.

Starting from Sunday, Lunar New Year's Eve, Shanghai Airlines services from six Chinese cities will broadcast a short message about the coastal city's cuisine, scenic spots and culture as they approach to land.

The greeting, which will start on planes traveling from Beijing, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, is aimed at helping passengers feel closer to their destination.

"If the feedback is positive, we will expand this service to all flights," said Wang Wanlong, deputy general manager of corporate culture at Shanghai Airlines, a subsidiary of China Eastern Airlines.

Yu Qinglian, deputy general manager of cabin services, said the 70-second, local dialect message will be broadcast for the first time on Sunday on 13 flights.

"A bilingual Chinese-English introduction will be aired beforehand to alert passengers," he said.

"Following that is the broadcast, which introduces Shanghai's famous cuisine, snacks, scenic spots and many other things."

As a Shanghai-based carrier, the airline has been looking to add more local flavor to its service.

"Many Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan passengers originated from Shanghai, and the dialect broadcast is aimed to make them feel at home," Yu said.

On Wednesday, the first batch of 160 flight attendants all passed the dialect test after a week of training. It is estimated that between 500 and 600 flight attendants are needed to provide language service on Shanghai Airlines flights in the future, he added.

"I don't oppose to the idea (of a Shanghai dialect broadcast), as I like my mother tongue, but I'm not going to choose an airline because it offers such a service," said Qian Dashi, who studies in Melbourne, Australia, and recently returned home to Shanghai for the Spring Festival holiday.

"It could be an interesting experience for Shanghai passengers though, especially for the flights on Lunar New Year's Eve."

Cao Yisheng, an engineering intern at China Real Estate Information, suggested the dialect message be made optional, so as not to confuse passengers who do not understand it.

"It could be made available to Shanghai-native passengers through their earphones, for instance," he said. "Also, some historic buildings could be displayed on the overhead screens, which would add to the excitement of homesick people on the planes, and help spreading Shanghai culture."

Qian Ziliang in Shanghai contributed to this story.

China Daily

(China Daily 01/20/2012 page7)