Minister of Transportation and Communications Chen Jian-yu (陳建宇) reiterated yesterday that allowing Chinese tourists to board transit flights in Taiwan and improving the efficiency of cross-strait flight operations are separate issues to be discussed in cross-strait negotiations.
The Ministry of Transportation and Communications (MOTC) is standing firm on this position, he told lawmakers on the Legislative Yuan’s Transportation Committee in response to a question from Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Yeh Yi-jin (葉宜津).
There have been media reports that Beijing intends to allow Chinese tourists to transit through Taiwan on their way to a third country — in exchange for Taipei’s permission to allow Chinese airlines to fly over the midline of the Taiwan Strait.
Mainland Affairs Council Minister Andrew Hsia (夏立言) has said that the government would give up the opportunity of boosting transit passenger numbers in the nation’s airports rather than allow Chinese airlines to fly across the midline of the Strait.
“China has said that it intends to improve the efficiency of the cross-strait flight route, which is just a euphemism. What it wants to accomplish through its proposal is the weakening of Taiwan’s national defense,” Yeh said.
The committee also discussed the Hengchun Airport as members reviewed the Civil Aeronautics Administration’s (CAA) proposed budget for next year.
The airport in Hengchun (恆春), Pingtung County, loses more than NT$60 million (US$1.83 million) annually.
CAA records show that there has not been a flight using the airport since September last year.
Yeh and DPP Legislator Chen Ou-po (陳歐珀) said the government spent about NT$500 million building the airport, which opened in 2004, but the facility has only made NT$1.34 million per year, while its annual overhead tops NT$67 million.
The airport has been unable to develop because of many factors, including downslope winds that affect its runway as well as having a nuclear power plant as its neighbor, Yeh said.
The ministry has asked the Pingtung County Government to conduct research to help it determine if the airport should remain open, Yeh said it was doubtful more research could solve the problem.
Yeh said she hoped that the NT$2 million research project would address the airport’s financial losses.
DPP Legislator Kuan Bi-ling (管碧玲) said that the ministry should not only consider whether the airport should stay open or be closed, but also take tourism development in the area — including Hengchun, Kenting (墾丁) and Siaoliouciou (小琉球) — into account.
CAA Director General Lin Tyh-ming (林志明) said that the results of the research are due in August next year.
Hengchun Airport’s short runway means it can only be used by small aircraft. Only one airline uses the airport and last year there were just 768 passengers.
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