‘SMALL THREE LINKS’: The ministry said it plans to add extra holiday flights and ferry services between Kinmen and Xiamen, and it could also request military aircraft
Taipei Times
Date: Jan 30, 2018
By: Shelley Shan / Staff reporter
The Ministry of Transportation and Communications (MOTC) yesterday said that it has
Ministry of Transportation and Communications Deputy Minister Wang Kwo-tsai, center, yesterday speaks at a news conference at the ministry in Taipei as Department of Aviation and Navigation Director-General Chen Chin-sheng, left, and Department of Railways and Highways Director-General Chen Wen-juei listen. Photo: Chen Yi-chia, Taipei Times
prepared for the worst-case scenario in its plans to help Taiwanese return home from China for the Lunar New Year holiday, after the Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) denied requests for additional cross-strait flights.
The CAA denied requests made earlier this month by XiamenAir (廈門航空) and China Eastern Airlines (中國東方航空) for 176 additional flights during the holiday, citing potential safety risks generated by their use of the northbound M503 aviation route and three other extensions.
The two airlines had defied the CAA’s repeated warnings not to use the northbound M503 route, as well as the W121, W122 and W123 extensions before Taiwan and China engage in communication over the technical issues involved.
Beijing has yet to express any intention to communicate with Taiwan on the use of the four routes, the ministry said. [FULL STORY]
