On 4 October 2021, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) announced at the 77th Annual General Meeting of IATA being held in Boston, USA that China Eastern Airlines will host the 78th Annual General Meeting (AGM) and World Air Transport Summit in Shanghai, China, on 19-21 June 2022.
During the AGM, a decision was made in addition to the announcement of host city of the next Annual General Meeting. IATA officially announced that Chinese is to formally become a language of International Air Transport Association. As the only newly added language, Chinese joins English, French, Spanish and Arabic, bringing the number of languages for the body to five.
"We look forward to gathering the aviation industry in Shanghai for the 78th Annual General Meeting of IATA. China is a dynamic aviation market, with the domestic market among the fastest to recover from the damage brought by COVID-19." said Willie Walsh, IATA's director general.
"China Eastern Airlines is excited to host the IATA Annual General Meeting and to welcome our industry colleagues to our home city of Shanghai to share this charming city's openness, inclusiveness, fashion and innovation. We look forward to the discussion on the development prospect of the aviation industry and joint efforts in promoting the healthy development of our industry." said Liu Shaoyong, chairman of China Eastern Airlines.
IATA, founded in 1945, is a worldwide non-governmental organization. IATA represents about 290 airlines in over 130 countries and regions. The Annual General Meeting (AGM) of IATA, held in June every year, is the world's largest and preeminent gathering of airline leaders. It attracts 800-1000 participants each time.