Monday, September 28, 2026 - Two giant pandas, Ping Ping and Fu Shuang, have arrived in Atlanta from China under a new 10-year agreement between Zoo Atlanta and the China Wildlife Conservation Association.
The pair landed at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport on September 27 aboard a dedicated FedEx Boeing 777, bringing giant pandas back to Atlanta after the zoo's previous pandas left in 2024.
The arrival follows Chinese President Xi Jinping's announcement during his recent summit with US President Donald Trump in Washington that the pandas would be coming to Atlanta. Both bears were born in 2020 at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding.
Their transfer comes as the US and China continue discussions across several areas, making the panda agreement a highly visible element of the latest diplomatic engagement.
Atlanta residents and zoo visitors will have to wait before seeing the new arrivals. Zoo Atlanta says Ping Ping and Fu Shuang will spend about a month in quarantine inside a biosecure area of the zoo's new panda complex, with a public debut date still to be announced.
The zoo says the agreement also supports continued cooperation on giant panda conservation and research.
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