EVA Air, the nation’s second-largest carrier by revenue, yesterday launched a fleet of four passenger planes with floral-themed cabins to promote the Taipei International Flora Expo (TIFE) 2010.
The Taipei City Government has designated EVA Air as the official carrier for the expo, which will run from Nov. 6 to April 25 next year.
The four planes each took off from a different Asian city yesterday to launch the TIFE promotion drive, the airline said.
EVA Air has outfitted four of its Airbus 330-200s — which fly shorter-haul and regional routes — with floral themes. More than 40 items, including place mats, cups and head-rest covers, have been imprinted with flora expo images, the Taipei City Department of Economic Development said.
The airline is also featuring expo images on its luggage tags and boarding passes, which can be kept by passengers as a memento.
In addition, EVA Air said it would offer special passenger and airfreight rates for visitors and participating exhibitors at the expo.
Children from an orphanage run by the non-profit Taiwan Fund for Children and Families have been invited to board one of the theme flights and will be treated to a “TIFE inflight dinner,” city department officials said.
The department said that as of last month, 99 organizations and groups from 68 cities in 37 countries had registered to take part in the 2010 Taipei flora expo as exhibitors.
FAST TRACK? Chinese spouses must renounce their Chinese citizenship and pledge allegiance to Taiwan to gain citizenship, some demonstrators said Opponents and supporters of a bill that would allow Chinese spouses to obtain Taiwanese citizenship in four years instead of six staged protests near the Legislative Yuan in Taipei yesterday morning. Those who oppose the bill proposed by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) demanded that Chinese spouses be granted citizenship only after renouncing their Chinese citizenship, passing a citizenship test and pledging allegiance to Taiwan. The demonstrators, who were protesting at a side entrance to the Legislative Yuan on Jinan Road, were mostly members of the Taiwan Association of University Professors and other organizations advocating Taiwanese independence. Supporters of the bill, led
SILENT MAJORITY: Only 1 percent of Chinese rejected all options but war to annex Taiwan, while one-third viewed war as unacceptable, a university study showed Many Chinese are more concerned with developments inside their country than with seeking unification with Taiwan, al-Jazeera reported on Friday. Although China claims Taiwan as its own territory and has vowed to annex it, by force if necessary, 23-year-old Chinese Shao Hongtian was quoted by al-Jazeera as saying that “hostilities are not the way to bring China and Taiwan together.” “I want unification to happen peacefully,” Shao said. Al-Jazeera said it changed Shao’s name to respect his wish for anonymity. If peaceful unification is not possible, Shao said he would prefer “things to remain as they are,” adding that many of his friends feel
Taiwan has “absolute air superiority” over China in its own airspace, Deputy Minister of National Defense Po Horng-huei (柏鴻輝) told a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee on Monday, amid concern over whether Taipei could defend itself against a military incursion by Beijing. Po made the remarks in response to a question from Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Chiu Chih-wei (邱志偉) on whether Taiwan would have partial or complete air superiority if Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) warplanes were to enter Taiwan’s airspace. Po, a retired pilot, said that the Taiwanese military has “absolute air superiority” over PLA
A shipment of basil pesto imported by Costco Wholesale Taiwan from the US in the middle of last month was intercepted at the border after testing positive for excessive pesticide residue, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said yesterday. Samples taken from a shipment of the Kirkland Signature brand of basil pesto imported by Costco contained 0.1 milligrams per kilogram of ethylene oxide, exceeding the non-detectable limit. Ethylene oxide is a carcinogenic substance that can be used as a pesticide. The 674kg shipment of basil pesto would either be destroyed or returned to its country of origin, as is the procedure for all