Mon, Jul 19, 2021 page16

• EVA to add passenger flights to the US

  THIRTY PER WEEK: The expansion comes amid rising demand and expectation that higher COVID-19 vaccination rates in North America would further boost ticket sales

  • By Kao Shih-ching / Staff reporter
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  EVA Airways Corp (長榮航空) is planning to increase its weekly passenger flights from Taiwan to North America next month after demand rose substantially this month.

  “So far, the number of reservations for round-trip flights between Taiwan and North America has grown 27 percent from June, and the passenger load factor is nearly 100 percent for both the business class and the premium economy class,” EVA chairman Steve Lin (林寶水) said at the company’s annual general meeting in Taipei on Friday.

  From next month, the airline would offer five round-trip flights from Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport to Seattle per week, as well as four to New York, two each to Chicago and Vancouver, and one each to Toronto and Houston, the company said.

  

  EVA Airways Corp planes are parked at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport on July 6. The airline is planning to increase its weekly passenger flights from Taiwan to North America next month after demand rose substantially this month.

  Photo: Tony Yao, Taipei Times

  EVA would continue to offer seven flights a week to Los Angeles, it added.

  Overall, its weekly flights from Taiwan to North America would rise to 30, it said.

  While demand for passenger flights to North American is expected to grow due to more people being vaccinated in the US and relaxed vaccination policies, the airline still expects a tough road ahead as market uncertainty remains due to the global spread of the more transmissible Delta variant of SARS-CoV-2, Lin said.

  Nevertheless, Lin said that the company would closely monitor the market situation and make adjustments to its operations if necessary.

  The airline said that an increase in operational costs due to disease prevention measures might be taken into account when it considers adjusting ticket prices.

  As EVA operates much fewer passenger flights than it did before the COVID-19 pandemic, rising fuel prices would not affect its passenger business as much as before, it said.

  Meanwhile, EVA would take delivery of its first new Boeing 777F cargo jet in October, with another two cargo planes slated to arrive in November and December, Lin said.

  The airline holds an upbeat outlook for its cargo business in the fourth quarter, expecting cargo rates to remain comparatively high given robust demand for cargo space from Asia to Europe.

  The fourth quarter is traditionally a peak season for the cargo business, as many consumer electronic products, such as smartphones, are usually launched during the quarter, EVA said.
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