UNI Air and Mandarin Airlines, two of the main domestic flight operators, yesterday said that weather conditions and bird strikes are increasingly disrupting flights.
At a panel discussion during the International Aviation Safety Management Summit in Taipei, UNI Air chairman Solomon Lin (林志忠) said that only 55 percent of the airline’s flights between Taiwan proper and Nangan (南竿) and Beigan (北竿) townships in outlying Lienchiang County were dispatched during the first half of the year.
Almost half of the flights were canceled due to thick fog or other visibility problems, Lin said.
Photo courtesy of the Civil Aviation Administration
Since 2015, UNI Air has also had to complete 16 overhauls and airplane blade damage repairs due bird strikes, he said.
Overhauls involve the thorough inspection, disassembly, repair and reassembly of an aircraft or its major components.
Lin said that while Taiwan’s airports have measures to drive away birds before takeoffs and landings, he hoped that the Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) could comprehensively research the ecology of birds in the area.
Mandarin Airlines president Chang Cheng-hao (張程皓) said the airline encountered eight bird strikes in the first half of the year.
It is a hidden operational risk, especially in Taichung and Penghu County, he said.
ATR aircraft are used on most domestic routes, with about 35 minutes required for preparation between flights, meaning the crew operates under pressure, Chang said.
Additional issues are the weather and cabin crew exhaustion, he said.
While passengers expect punctuality, the airline emphasizes safety above everything, making diversions whenever necessary, Chang said.
Minister of Transportation and Communications Li Meng-yen (李孟諺) acknowledged the collective efforts of airline service providers.
As the aviation industry develops, aviation safety accountability should be noted, as aircraft are more sensitive than any other means of transportation, he said.
CAA Director-General Ho Shu-ping (何淑萍) said that aviation safety is a dynamic process with everyone playing an important role.
The CAA would push those involved to ensure safety, Ho said.
Aviation experts, such as Asia Pacific Centre for Aviation Safety director Mitchell Fox and Airbus regional safety director of Southeast Asia Adrian Abrahan, were invited to the summit to speak about their experiences in the field.
Police have issued warnings against traveling to Cambodia or Thailand when others have paid for the travel fare in light of increasing cases of teenagers, middle-aged and elderly people being tricked into traveling to these countries and then being held for ransom. Recounting their ordeal, one victim on Monday said she was asked by a friend to visit Thailand and help set up a bank account there, for which they would be paid NT$70,000 to NT$100,000 (US$2,136 to US$3,051). The victim said she had not found it strange that her friend was not coming along on the trip, adding that when she
INFRASTRUCTURE: Work on the second segment, from Kaohsiung to Pingtung, is expected to begin in 2028 and be completed by 2039, the railway bureau said Planned high-speed rail (HSR) extensions would blanket Taiwan proper in four 90-minute commute blocs to facilitate regional economic and livelihood integration, Railway Bureau Deputy Director-General Yang Cheng-chun (楊正君) said in an interview published yesterday. A project to extend the high-speed rail from Zuoying Station in Kaohsiung to Pingtung County’s Lioukuaicuo Township (六塊厝) is the first part of the bureau’s greater plan to expand rail coverage, he told the Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times). The bureau’s long-term plan is to build a loop to circle Taiwan proper that would consist of four sections running from Taipei to Hualien, Hualien to
The Civil Aviation Administration yesterday said that it is considering punishments for China Airlines (CAL) and Starlux Airlines for making hard landings and overworking their cabin crew when the nation was hit by Typhoon Kong-rey in October last year. The civil aviation authority launched an investigation after media reported that many airlines were forced to divert their flights to different airports or go around after failing to land when the typhoon affected the nation on Oct. 30 and 31 last year. The agency reviewed 503 flights dispatched by Taiwanese airlines during those two days, as well as weather data, flight hours
Three people have had their citizenship revoked after authorities confirmed that they hold Chinese ID cards, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said yesterday. Two of the three people were featured in a recent video about Beijing’s “united front” tactics by YouTuber Pa Chiung (八炯) and Taiwanese rapper Chen Po-yuan (陳柏源), including Su Shi-en (蘇士恩), who displayed a Chinese ID card in the video, and taekwondo athlete Lee Tung-hsien (李東憲), who mentioned he had obtained a Chinese ID card in a telephone call with Chen, Liang told the council’s weekly news conference. Lee, who reportedly worked in
RSS