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MAC says it will help with issue of overfly rights

The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) late Wednesday night appeared to show some flexibility on allowing Taiwan-registered civil airliners to fly through Chinese airspace.

"Considering Taiwan's entry into the World Trade Organization and aviation security issues following the Sept. 11 attacks, the government would handle the airlines' applications to fly through Chinese airspace and would offer the appropriate assistance," MAC chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) told the Legislative Yuan.

Tsai, however, did not elaborate on what would constitute "appropriate handing" of the applications except to say that: "How to handle the issue appropriately would depend on what airlines apply for."

Under the Statute Governing the Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area, Taiwan's airlines are forbidden to fly through Chinese airspace.

To avoid airspace in Central Asia during the hostilities in Afghanistan, the Taipei Airline Association last month submitted a request for permission to fly through Chinese airspace.

The MAC and the Ministry of Transportation and Communications (MOTC), the two administrative departments responsible for the matter, responded that airlines seeking permission to fly through Chinese airspace must apply for permission but made no mention of whether, and under what conditions and circumstances, permission might be granted.

Alex Shih (施建華), secretary-general of the Taipei Airline Association (台北市航空運輸協會), which represents all six air carriers based in Taiwan, said the government seemed positive about the airlines' proposal to fly Europe-bound flights over China to avoid Central Asia -- a move that would also reduce fuel costs and flight times. "The government has responded faster than we expected," he said.

Shih added, however, that the association is still waiting for "a clear and definite indication from the MAC" on whether it would grant permission before deciding whether to lodge a formal application for the overfly rights.

He said that the association was awaiting further information that was to be released by the MAC late last night or today.

But the MAC has cancelled a meeting scheduled for today with the MOTC and the association to discuss the proposal.

MAC officials could not be reached yesterday for comment on the meeting's sudden and unexpected cancellation.

Shih added, moreover, that the association is itself not ready to make the decision to reroute flights because reports from China Airlines and EVA Airways that provide an evaluation of the financial and technical aspects of the proposed new routes are still pending.

China Airlines and EVA Airways, the only Taiwan-registered carriers operating services over Central Asia, may need to reroute Europe-bound flights over China's southwestern regions and its western region of Xinjiang.

If the consensus among its members is that flying through Chinese airspace is in the interests of both flight safety and airline profitability, the association will file a joint application for the overfly rights and negotiate with the government on its members' behalf.

In related news, Taiwan's airlines have been authorized beginning today by both Taiwan and China to fly through the oceanic airspace of the South China Sea, which is under Chinese supervision. Oceanic airspace is airspace over the high seas, for which the International Civil Aviation Organization delegates responsibility for the provision of air-traffic services to various states.
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