Taiwan’s cross-strait transit stop trial gets underway

2016/02/03

Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport welcomed Feb.1 its first mainland Chinese transit passengers as part of cross-strait trial program launched the same day by the ROC government.

The first two of the eight travelers arrived from the southeastern city of Nanchang on China Eastern Airlines Fight 2047 and took Taiwan China Airlines’ connecting Flight 835 to Bangkok. The remainder touched down in two batches from Chongqing and Kunming, respectively, en route to Bangkok and Los Angeles later the same day.

Chou Jih-shine, vice chairman of Taipei City-based Straits Exchange Foundation, said the arrivals were the first phase of a limited trial approved by Taiwan and mainland China.

“Starting Feb. 1, travelers flying from Chongqing, Kunming and Nanchang in mainland China will be able to transit through TTIA to third destinations,” he said. Boasting a combined population of more than 40 million, the “cities are projected to boost the airport’s passenger traffic by 26,000 annually.”

Currently, ROC nationals can transit via major mainland Chinese airports on their way to various destinations worldwide. The trial is viewed as paving the way for further development of the local aviation industry, while reaffirming the expanding nature of Taipei-Beijing ties, according to Chou.

“The undertaking is a concrete result of the historic meeting last November in Singapore between ROC President Ma Ying-jeou and mainland Chinese leader Xi Jinping,” he said.

“Building upon this healthy state of affairs, the SEF stepped up communications with Beijing-headquartered Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits in the past few months to complete preliminary preparations for the historic event.”

Chou said if the trial is a success, he expects it to further expand and help position TTIA as a major air transportation hub in the region.

Source: Taiwan Today (http://taiwantoday.tw/ct.asp?xItem=241976&ctNode=2194&mp=9)