Bei Bei says bye bye to Washington today as he flies aboard FedEx’s panda express 777 to Chengdu. The four-year-old giant panda is being flown to China to help increase the global giant panda population. Both he and his sister Bao Bao were born at the Smithsonian National Zoo in Washington DC. She was flown to China in 2017 on a similar flight.
Follow Bei Bei
Bei Bei will fly from Washington DC to Chengdu aboard FedEx 777 N883FD. The 16 hour flight will travel east over the North Atlantic, through Europe and into Kazakhstan, then China. You can follow the FedEx panda express below.
Inside the panda express
Featured image © Robert Pittuck
FDX9759 route to Chengdu

On board the Panda Express
Bei Bei will travel in a custom steel and plexiglass container along with 66 pounds of bamboo, 2 pounds of apples and pears, two bags of leafeater biscuits, 2 pounds of cooked sweet potatoes and plenty of water. Making the journey with Bei Bei are the National Zoo’s assistant curator of giant pandas and the zoo’s chief veterinarian.