ROC monitors testing of flight route by Beijing

2015-03-17

The ROC government and armed forces closely monitored March 15 a test flight along mainland China’s proposed M503 flight route near the median line in the Taiwan Strait.

“All relevant authorities, including the Civil Aeronautics Administration and Ministry of National Defense, were briefed and at full readiness,” Cabinet spokesman Sun Lih-chyun said. “Technical details such as communications and radar systems related to the two-hour flight at 11 a.m. from Shanghai to Xiamen were discussed by Taipei and Beijing before the test.”

MND spokesman Lou Shou-he said the armed forces kept a close eye on the flight from takeoff to landing, and continued carrying out regular missions and routine air patrols. “We are confident that the military’s existing surveillance and response capabilities are sufficient to meet any contingency.”

The mainland Chinese aircraft flew incident-free along the north-south M503 route 10.2 nautical miles west of the median line. The route, announced by Beijing in January and shifted a further 6 nautical miles west after consultations between the two sides, is to be used by a maximum of 16 airlines operating 30 commercial flights daily.

The east-west W121, W122 and W123 routes extending from M503, which were included in Beijing’s original flight plan, will not be launched at present as they run the risk of interfering with services between Taiwan and the outlying islands of Kinmen and Matsu, according to the CAA.

Taiwan expects to receive flight data collected during the test, including safety and technical parameters like aircraft altitude and weather conditions. “Only after the two sides discuss and review test results can a date be announced for inauguration of the new route,” the Mainland Affairs Council said.

Source: Taiwan Today (http://taiwantoday.tw/ct.asp?xItem=228311&CtNode=413)