Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Shen Lyu-shun (沈呂巡) yesterday said he agreed that the ministry should liaise with the Civil Aeronautics Administration to offer additional flights or send chartered flights to major European cities to bring back about 1,500 Taiwanese tourists stranded in Europe because of the volanic ash cloud that has shut down air travel in the region.
Shen told members of the legislature’s Foreign and National Defense Committee that the nation’s representative office in Frankfurt had mobilized every one of its 15 officials to offer assistance to Taiwanese tourists at the city’s airport, helping them get temporary visas so that they could enter the city.
Officials stationed at other European cities, including Brussels, Edinburgh and Amsterdam, had also all been mobilized, Shen said.
Meanwhile, China Airlines (CAL) said yesterday that it is scheduled to resume flights between Taipei and Rome today.
A Taipei-Rome flight will also be offered on Thursday and Sunday. CAL’s flights from Taipei to and from London and Amsterdam, however, have all been canceled.
Flights between Taipei and Bangkok will continue, CAL added.
Today’s EVA Airways’ flights between Taipei and London, and Taipei and Amsterdam have been canceled.
CAL said it has two aircraft stranded at Frankfurt Airport and about nine flight crews trapped at five airports in Europe that it services.
EVA Airways has about six flight crews stranded in Europe.
Passengers are advised to contact the airlines for updated information.
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