Taiwan's civil aeronautics chief said yesterday that shifting international air traffic to avoid flights over Penghu would force foreign air companies to switch to routes through China, leaving Taiwan marginalized.
"Asking airline companies to make a detour is not reasonable. Also, they might choose routes through China if we canceled the route," said Billy Chang (張國政), director of the Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA).
In the wake of the French-built ATR-72 cargo-plane crash off Penghu en route from the CKS International Airport to Macau on Saturday, Penghu County Commissioner Lai Feng-wei (賴峰偉) proposed that the central government move Taiwan's main international air corridor, which passes directly through Penghu airspace, because the China Airlines CI-611 crash in May and the ATR-72 crash at the weekend had seriously affected the county's tourism.
Chang formally responded to the suggestion for the first time, saying that any change in the route might result in Taiwan's marginalization since the route, known in aviation circles as A-1, is the shortest one from the CKS international airport to Hong Kong and is used by both Taiwanese and foreign airline companies.
"If we change the route, the time and cost of flights will obviously increase. That might make foreign flights shift to routes across the southeastern coast of China," said Chang.
According to Chang, there are four routes to the west of the Penghu archipelago used exclusively by the military and not open to civilian flights. The other two civil aviation routes, which go along Taiwan's western and eastern coasts, will cost more time and fuel -- making them economically unviable for airline firms.
"From the perspective of cost, airline companies would not prefer to fly along such time-consuming and costly routes," said Chang, adding that the issue should be considered cautiously.
The A-1 route is the shortest air passage between Taiwan's CKS international airport and Hong Kong. Hundreds of domestic and foreign flights fly the route daily.
Regarding the effects on Penghu's tourism by the crash, Chang said the public should not connect crashes with the archipelago's tourism industry.
He said it is possible for planes to crash into Penghu's sea area underneath the air route "just as car accidents will happen on the highway."
Chang added that the CAA had spent some NT$2 billion on building an airport that is in line with international standards so that airline companies could run international charter services from the county.
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