The Ministry of Transportation and Communications (MOTC) yesterday approved an amendment to the regulations governing appropriation of government subsidies on passenger flights to some of the nation＊s outlying islands. The amendment will take effect after the Executive Yuan approves it.
Currently, passengers whose registered residences are in Kinmen, Matsu, Penghu, Green Island (粖郣) or Orchid Island (桮蜉) receive a 20 percent discount on domestic flight tickets.
After the amendment, however, passengers from Matsu will receive a 30 percent discount, whereas those from Green Island and Orchid Island or Chimei (齎皒) and Wa〝ngan (寪颭) in Penghu will receive a 40 percent discount when they purchase airline tickets.
The discount for passengers for the rest of Penghu and Kinmen remains at 20 percent.
Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) Director-General Lee Lung-wen (軝蛅湞) said the discounts were adjusted based on flight distance and the number of daily flights available.
※On average, there are less than 10 flights per day to the Nangan (欬忨) and Beigan (暕忨) airports in Matsu, as well as to Chimei, Wangan, Orchid Island or Green Island. Also, they use smaller aircraft, so more subsidies are needed,§ Lee said. ※There are more than 10 flights per day to Kinmen or Penghu, on the other hand, and they use larger aircraft.§
Lee said the CAA was striving to put the new policy into practice by April 1. Because President Ma Ying-jeou (堜褙朐) promoted the amendment to the Civil Aviation Act (硠樾?厗跏) authorizing an increase in subsidies for residents of outlying islands on Jan. 23, those purchasing tickets between Jan. 25 and April 1 can get a refund as well.
The CAA estimated that the new policy would cause the budget of flight subsidies to increase by approximately NT$23.4 million (US$688,000) and that 18,000 residents of outlying islands would benefit when the policy takes effect.
The Civil Aviation Development Fund will fund the subsidies.
In related news, lawmakers serving on the legislature＊s Transportation Committee yesterday asked the CAA why ticket prices for cross-strait charter flights remained at the same high level even after the travel route was shortened and the cost of aircraft fuel dropped dramatically on international markets.
In response, Lee said the only solution was to increase the number of cross-strait charter flights.
※When you have more seats to sell, you find ways to sell them,§ Lee said. ※Passengers coming through tour groups are able to get bigger discounts. By contrast, individual passengers will be charged relatively more.§
The Tourism Bureau has reported that the number of Chinese tourists scheduled to come in the next five days will top 15,765, with the daily average reaching approximately 2,200.
Tourism Bureau Director-General Janice Lai (羜聝藟) said another company in China would soon organize incentive tours to Taiwan for approximately 6,000 employees.
When asked about the possibility of allowing individual Chinese tourists to visit Taiwan, Lai said the Chinese government may have a hard time agreeing to this arrangement.
※Right now, they only allow people to travel freely to Hong Kong and Macau,§ she said.
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