The Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) has started upgrading facilities at some airports to prepare for the expected influx of Chinese tourists.
The agency chose eight airports that can accommodate cross-strait charter flights: Taipei Songshan Airport, Taoyuan International Airport, Kaohsiung International Airport, Taichung Airport, Hualien Airport, Taitung Airport, Kinmen Airport and Penghu’s Makung Airport.
All the airports have either the experience to handle international charters or the facilities to do so, except for Magong and Songshan.
The press was invited to visit the Songshan yesterday, where new custom-inspection-quarantine (CIQ) and baggage claim areas must be set up.
The CAA plans to allow Chinese tourists to arrive at Songshan’s No. 9, No. 10 and No. 11 air bridges in the first terminal and then directed to the CIQ and baggage areas in the second terminal. Partitions will be used to separate the Chinese tourists and other passengers.
CAA Deputy Director-General Lin Shinn-der (林信得) said the agency has earmarked about NT$30 million (US$990,000) for first-stage construction to improve Songshan’s facilities, which will be finished by the end of this month.
For the second stage, the CAA will spend NT$90 million to construct new facilities, based on the demand in the market, he said. Duty-free shops will also be built as part of the second-stage construction, he said.
Initially weekend cross-strait charter flights will run between Friday and Monday, he said, and the partitions would be removed to accommodate other passengers the rest of the time.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator John Chiang (蔣孝嚴), who joined the press tour, said the current utility rate of the Songshan Airport was less than 60 percent.
Songshan was expected to be a prime location since Chinese tourists would be able to directly enter Taipei or go to the Neihu (內湖) and Nangang (南港) science parks, he said.
“Judging from the progress made so far, the airport should meet public expectations in the initial stage,” Chiang said.
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