Carrying on a tradition of strategic alliances with major hotel chains, China Airlines Ltd (CAL, 中華航空) announced a partnership with Formosa International Hotels Corp (晶華國際酒店集團) yesterday to provide new in-flight food services.
As of July 1, CAL began offering Shanghainese cuisine from the Regent Hotel, a subsidiary of Formosa International Hotels Corp, to first class passengers on its route from Taipei to Tokyo. Dynasty class passengers can also enjoy the new cuisine on routes from Taipei to Osaka, Fukuoka, Hiroshima and Sapporo.
CAL also provides six unique dishes to Dynasty class passengers on weekend charter flights from China to Taipei, which are inspired by art works at the National Palace Museum.
“Part of Taiwan’s culture is its commitment to fine food. We want to present the best cuisine Taiwan has to offer even before passengers land in the country,” CAL president Sun Huang-hsiang (孫洪祥) said during the ceremony yesterday.
“By pushing the envelope on excellent food services, we hope that China Airlines will stand out from its peers and attract additional business from world travelers. The Regent Hotel is proud to be a part of this endeavor,” said Angela Chang (張安琪), president of Formosa International Hotels Corp.
Meanwhile, despite positive re-focusing efforts from CAL, the beleaguered Far Eastern Air Transport Corp (FAT, 遠東航空) is facing bankruptcy in the near future.
FAT yesterday elected Huang Jian-hue (黃劍輝) and Hsu Hui-fung (�?p) as the company’s new chairman and vice chairman respectively, at a time when the carrier owes months of salary to its 1,200 employees.
FAT is also behind on payments for multiple leases on its office buildings, land and aircraft hangars that have been leased from the Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA), which prompted the CAA to cut off water and electricity supplies to the company earlier yesterday.
However, since tropical storm Kalmaegi was approaching, the CAA said it would temporarily restore water and electricity to the carrier, which would allow FAT to complete its storm preparation activities.
As soon as the storm passes, the restrictions would be reinstated, the CAA said.
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