TRAVEL
Asiana 747 makes last stop
Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport yesterday became the final overseas stop for Asiana Airlines’ last Boeing 747-400 plane, as the South Korean carrier prepares to retire the giant commercial jet known as the Queen of the Skies. The 747-400, registered as HL7428, touched down in Taiwan at 11:24am after taking off from Incheon International Airport at 10:15am and was greeted by firetrucks festively spraying it with jets of water as it taxied its way to Gate D6. The gate was chosen for its symbolism, having been the same gate where China Airlines retired its last passenger 747-400 on March 20, 2021. At 1:34pm, HL7428 took off from Taoyuan for its final trip in the skies back to Incheon before it was set to be retired. The plane’s final voyage drew the attention and attendance of many aviation aficionados and fans of the airline, completely selling out. A Hong Kong-based South Korean passenger said he was taking his mother on the final voyage to remember a trip he took with his parents to the US 15 years ago on the same plane. Another traveler, a Japanese student enrolled at a Taiwanese university, said he bought a ticket to Incheon on the plane out of interest in the model. All passengers who flew on either leg of the 747-400’s final flight were presented with commemorative luggage tags, Taoyuan ground crew personnel said.
SOCIETY
Crosswalk changes planned
People would see more green-and-white pedestrian crossings and more distance allotted for turning vehicles at intersections if a planned traffic amendment focused on improving pedestrian safety is implemented, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said. If passed, the amendment to the Regulations for Road Traffic Signs, Markings and Signals would give clear protocols for local governments to follow, ministry official Chu Da-ching (朱大慶) said. The amendment advises local governments to redesign pedestrian crossings to reduce the number of traffic accidents around intersections, the ministry said. Measures include moving crossings further away from intersections and painting crossings white and green. The eye-catching green is meant to warn approaching vehicles to slow down as they approach the crossings, Chu said. Crosswalks should be designed 3m to 5m from intersections to give drivers turning longer to react to moving pedestrians and avoid blind spots, the measures say. Local municipalities currently only have a guideline introduced last year advising them how to improve pedestrian safety. Several cities and counties have already implemented some of the new traffic regulations and said they have had positive results.
SPACE
Taiwan joins satellite show
Taiwan last week took part in this year’s Satellite Exhibition in Washington, with a pavilion displaying the nation’s achievements in the fields of microwave antennas, key satellite components and materials. The Taiwan Space Pavilion aimed to showcase the nation’s satellite innovations and capabilities, the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the US said. It was set up by Taiwan Space Agency (TASA), the Industrial Technology Research Institute and industry players. Tsai Hsin-hsuan (蔡欣璇), a TASA specialist in industry promotion, said that one of the highlights of the Taiwan pavilion was the TASA-developed Global Navigation Satellite System-Reflectometry (GNSS-R) employed by the domestically developed weather satellite Triton to collect GNSS signals reflected by the Earth’s surface. As for the Formosat-7 constellation, which was launched in 2019, Tsai said the combination of observation data collected by the GNSS reflectometry and the data provided by Formosat-7 can help improve the accuracy of severe weather forecasts. Participating Taiwanese manufacturer YTTEK Technology showcased its new product — a high- speed satellite modem — while Min Chun Precision exhibited a ground-based weather radar system. The Satellite Conference and Exhibition is the largest annual gathering for the satellite and space communities.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
A wild live dugong was found in Taiwan for the first time in 88 years, after it was accidentally caught by a fisher’s net on Tuesday in Yilan County’s Fenniaolin (粉鳥林). This is the first sighting of the species in Taiwan since 1937, having already been considered “extinct” in the country and considered as “vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. A fisher surnamed Chen (陳) went to Fenniaolin to collect the fish in his netting, but instead caught a 3m long, 500kg dugong. The fisher released the animal back into the wild, not realizing it was an endangered species at
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and
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