China Airlines Ltd (CAL, 華航) is planning to offer 40 percent more passenger flights this quarter than last quarter, as air travel demand is rising, the company said yesterday as it announced the launch of a Pokemon-themed jet.
The airline is planning to paint one of its Airbus A321neo planes with a livery representing the Japanese animation, video game and mobile game franchise, China Airlines told a news conference in Taipei.
Eleven Pokemon characters would be depicted on the fuselage, including Pikachu, Jigglypuff and Snorlax, while the Poke Ball, which players use to capture the characters in the games, would be depicted on the engines, the airline said.
Photo: CNA
“It is the first time that The Pokemon Co partners with a foreign airline to launch a Pokemon-themed airplane,” the company said, adding that it took about two years for the two sides to prepare for the launch.
As the COVID-19 pandemic affects air travel worldwide, the Japanese firm runs a project called “Flying Pikachu” to encourage people to regain their enthusiasm for travel, and the collaboration with CAL is part of the project, Pokemon executive Susumu Fukunaga said.
The Pokemon-themed airplane would be used for flights to North Asian and Southeast Asian destinations, China Airlines said.
It is not easy to forecast when travel demand will fully recover given the emergence of new variants of SARS-CoV-2, but demand should rise more than 40 percent this quarter, CAL president Kao Shing-hwang (高星潢) said.
The airline would steadily increase the number of passenger flights and is planning to offer more flights to London; Bali, Indonesia; and Sapporo, Japan, this quarter, Kao said.
Asked whether ticket prices would remain at a higher level than before the pandemic, Kao said prices would be determined by supply and demand, and might drop during the slow season.
The number of passenger flights would not increase drastically in the near term, the airline said, adding that it expects its air cargo business to remain stable this quarter.
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