China Airlines Co (
China Airlines may place an order in the second half or early next year for at least 12 planes to replace a dozen Airbus A300s, said company spokesman Roger Han.
``The evaluation will be completed in the second half, and we may add few more to the 12 replacements to meet future expansion,'' Han said.
China Airlines had its fifth fatal crash in 11 years on May 25, in which 225 people died when a 23-year old Boeing Co 747-200 plane broke up in midair before plunging into the sea off Taiwan.
The air carrier has been trying to improve its safety record after three people died in August 1999 when a China Airlines McDonnell Douglas Corp MD-11 carrying 315 people crashed while landing in a storm in Hong Kong.
In February 1998, the airline crashed an A300 near Taipei's main airport, killing 202 people, including Taiwan's central bank governor.
Fours years earlier, another of China Airlines' A300s crashed at Nagoya airport in Japan, killing 264 people.
Separately, China Airlines has agreed to revise terms of a planned NT$4.5 billion offering of convertible bonds following its plane crash.
"The crash happened as we were trying to sell our bonds, so we have decided to alter our terms to sweeten the deal," Han said.
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