TransAsia Airways Corp (TNA, 復興航空) chairman Vincent Lin (林明昇) yesterday called for the launch of the nation’s first low-cost carrier (LCC) to develop the airline industry.
Lin said the government should encourage the nation’s three listed air carriers — TNA, China Airlines Ltd (CAL, 中華航空) and EVA Airways Corp (EVA, 長榮航空) — to form a joint venture LCC.
“Currently, the LCC market lacks a Taiwanese brand,” Lin said while giving a speech at the Institute of Transportation, which is affiliated with the Ministry of Transportation and Communications.
Lin said Taiwan has been showing solid demand for LCC business, with various budget airlines in Asia launching routes between Taiwan and major Asian cuntries, such as Japan, South Korea, Singapore and Malaysia, in the past few years.
However, because there is no Taiwanese LCC brand, the nation is not benefiting from this development, and in the long-run, this will have a negative impact on Taiwan’s aviation industry, Lin said.
Besides relaxing the rules, the best way for the nation to launch a Taiwanese budget air carrier is for the government and private companies to form a joint venture, Lin added.
Lin said the China Aviation Development Foundation (CADF, 中華航空事業發展基金會) — the biggest shareholder in CAL — should lead the nation’s three major air carriers in building a joint LCC.
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