The newly established Taoyuan International Airport Corp (TIA) said it would consult with experts to determine if the airport can upgrade its electrical system to cope with power supply problems.
Two power outages paralyzed the airport’s baggage carousel and left the airport in darkness twice on Wednesday. The first outage occurred at 5:30pm and lasted for about one-and-a-half hours. A second power outage happened at 10:17pm. Power was restored 33 minutes later. A few travelers complained that the incident was an embarrassment, as the airport is supposed to be the nation’s gateway to the world.
Deputy Minister of Transportation and Communications Yeh Kuang-shih (葉匡時), who doubles as chairman of the TIA, said the first outage was caused by a sudden power reduction from Taiwan Power Company (Taipower), while the second outage was the result of a Taipower test to check that the normal power supply had been restored.
“Although it was Taipower that caused the blackouts, there is room for improvement in the TIA as well,” Yeh said, adding that the airport would establish standard operating procedures and improve its ability to deal with emergencies.
Airport staff had to activate backup power systems manually to reset 47 microcircuit systems at the airport, which is why it took longer than expected, TIA president Lin Perng-liang (林鵬良) said.
Taipower said in a news release that the sudden voltage drop lasted only 0.07 seconds, which does not meet the minimum requirement for the company to be held liable for compensation payments.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
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