Taoyuan International Airport Corp yesterday said it had begun relocating 18 retired aircraft that formed part of the exhibition at the Chung Cheng Aviation Museum to a navy base in Taoyuan to make way for the construction of a taxiway.
The museum was closed on March 31 last year as part of the preliminary work for the airport’s Terminal Three. To build the new terminal, the taxiway has to be moved westward.
The airport company said the aircraft are being moved to a navy base in Dayuan Township (大園) in three batches, with the first phase carried out on Sunday.
A number of aviation fans turned up to bid farewell to the old planes, capturing the moment with their phones or cameras, the company said.
Among the collection of retired aircraft, the Spirit of Overseas Chinese (華僑精神號), a single-engine light airplane built by Cessna Aircraft Co in the US is the only one of its kind in Taiwan.
Jerry Tsai (蔡雲輔), an overseas Chinese, flew the plane from Oakland International Airport in California on June 25, 1984, while making stopovers in Honolulu, Manila and Saipan, before arriving at the Songshan Airport in Taipei on July 19, 1984.
The flight took a total of 55 hours and 39 minutes, and covered a distance of 13,651km. Tsai gifted the plane to then-president Chiang Ching-kuo(蔣經國), and it was subsequently placed on display at the aviation museum.
Moving the airplanes is no simple task, the company said. Adjustable hanger frames must be custom-made based on the weight of the plane. For planes displayed outdoors, the aircraft must be firmly placed on the frame before being hoisted by a 300-tonne crane and placed on a lift table.
Similar procedures were employed to move planes on display inside the museum, with the bellies of the aircraft being carefully protected by bubble wrap and blankets, it said.
The planes have to be moved across the taxiway, the southern runway and the southern road runway before entering the navy base, it said.
As they have to pass through the airport’s restricted zone, vehicles equipped with an ADSB radar system are deployed as guides, while control tower officers provide checks and confirmation of their location and movement.
Officials also revisit the route that the movers took to ensure that no aircraft parts were dropped along the way.
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