US-born Panda cub, 'Bei Bei' leaves for China in special FedEx plane 'Panda-Express'

Bei Bei the last remaining panda cub in the US has left for China. Bei Bei, which means 'precious' in Mandarin left the US on a 16-hour flight from Washington to Chengdu. Bei Bei left on a specially outfitted Boeing 777 accompanied by his keeper and a veterinarian.

16-hour flight back to China

4-year-old Bei Bei was always destined to return to China once it reached the age of 4. Notably, Giant Pandas are listed under the category of "vulnerable" to extinction by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, thus China lends pandas to zoos across the world and once a young panda reaches the age of four, he or she is repatriated to breed with other animals at sanctuaries in China.

Read: Photos Of Giant Panda Undergoing CT Scan In Berlin Zoo Goes Viral

Read: China's New 'panda' Cafe Gets Slammed For Keeping Dyed Dogs

According to zoo director Steve Monfort, the day that Bei Bei left was bittersweet. He also added that the zoo staff and millions of people have watched him as Bei Bei grew up into a true ambassador for his species. FedEx supposedly paid for the special outfitting of the Boeing 777 which has been dubbed the "Panda Express". Bei Bei will be travelling inside a steel and plexiglass crate, accompanied by his keeper and a veterinarian. Bei Bei was born in August 2015, and his name was announced with great fanfare at an event with then-first lady Michelle Obama and her Chinese counterpart Peng Liyuan.

Read: Grin And Bear It: Berlin Panda Gets CT Scan For Kidney Exam

Read: India Should Aspire To Grow At 10%: Baijayant Jay Panda

Panda Diplomacy

Panda Diplomacy is a term that was first used during the cold war. It refers to the giving out of Giant Pandas to other nations as a gesture of goodwill and in an effort to improve relations between China and the nation in question. One of the first nation with which China conducted 'Panda Diplomacy' was the United States of America, primarily due to the visit by President Nixon to China.

While originally panda diplomacy did not include a price tag, in recent years China has started to loan pandas to zoos across the world under standard contracts. These include a certain amount of money payable to China every year and the condition that any pandas born to the ones sent to the host country are properties of the People's Republic of China and will have to be returned to the nation once the cub turns 4.