Taiwan's aviation delegation, led by Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) director-general Billy Chang (張國政), is slated to meet with its Chinese counterpart in Macau today to discuss issues regarding cross-strait charter flights during the Lunar New Year holidays.
The Chinese delegation is led by Pu Zhaozhou (
In addition to Chang, the Taiwan delegation consists of CAA official Fang Chi-wen (
Led by Pu, China's delegation also includes three more CAAC officials.
Praising China's practical attitude toward the charter flights, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Vice Chairman Chiu Tai-san (
"We still follow the formula of the Taiwan-Hong Kong aviation. We will put off the dispute, presume no preconditions and respect each other. The government will lead and the private sector will assist," Chiu said yesterday.
Meanwhile, Taiwan will allow Chinese flag-carriers to fly to the country for the first time since 1949 if both sides of the Strait reach an agreement on direct charter flights for next month's Lunar New Year holiday, an official said yesterday.
Air China is the only Chinese airline which carries the national flag.
Minister of Transportation and Communications Lin Ling-san (
"The national flag will not be a problem, and we don't mind it," Lin told reporters.
Taiwan is to commence mass production of the Tien Kung (天弓, “Sky Bow”) III, IV and V missiles by the second quarter of this year if the legislature approves the government’s NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.78 billion) special defense budget, an official said yesterday. Commenting on condition of anonymity, a defense official with knowledge of the matter said that the advanced systems are expected to provide crucial capabilities against ballistic and cruise missiles for the proposed “T-Dome,” an advanced, multi-layered air defense network. The Tien Kung III is an air defense missile with a maximum interception altitude of 35km. The Tien Kung IV and V
The disruption of 941 flights in and out of Taiwan due to China’s large-scale military exercises was no accident, but rather the result of a “quasi-blockade” used to simulate creating the air and sea routes needed for an amphibious landing, a military expert said. The disruptions occurred on Tuesday and lasted about 10 hours as China conducted live-fire drills in the Taiwan Strait. The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said the exercises affected 857 international flights and 84 domestic flights, affecting more than 100,000 travelers. Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲), a research fellow at the government-sponsored Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said the air
A strong continental cold air mass is to bring pollutants to Taiwan from tomorrow, the Ministry of Environment said today, as it issued an “orange” air quality alert for most of the country. All of Taiwan except for Hualien and Taitung counties is to be under an “orange” air quality alert tomorrow, indicating air quality that is unhealthy for sensitive groups. In China, areas from Shandong to Shanghai have been enveloped in haze since Saturday, the ministry said in a news release. Yesterday, hourly concentrations of PM2.5 in these areas ranged from 65 to 160 micrograms per cubic meter (mg/m³), and pollutants were
Taiwan lacks effective and cost-efficient armaments to intercept rockets, making the planned “T-Dome” interception system necessary, two experts said on Tuesday. The concerns were raised after China’s military fired two waves of rockets during live-fire drills around Taiwan on Tuesday, part of two-day exercises code-named “Justice Mission 2025.” The first wave involved 17 rockets launched at 9am from Pingtan in China’s Fujian Province, according to Lieutenant General Hsieh Jih-sheng (謝日升) of the Office of the Deputy Chief of the General Staff for Intelligence at the Ministry of National Defense. Those rockets landed 70 nautical miles (129.6km) northeast of Keelung without flying over Taiwan,
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