The impact of a runway renovation project at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport was not as severe as expected, with Taoyuan International Airport Corp (TIAC) saying last week that the project caused less than 10 minutes of delay for flights operating during peak hours.
Earlier this year, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications announced it would close Runway 05/23 from Sept. 15 through Dec. 13 for construction work. It estimated flights operating at peak hours could be delayed by more than 15 minutes.
TIAC said Runway 06/24, the only runway that is still open, handled 36 departures and landings per hour, which slightly exceeded its capacity of 30 flights.
However, after monitoring the situation for the first two days after Runway 05/23 was closed, the company found delays could be limited to 10 minutes.
The ministry decided in 2008 to renovate the runways and -upgrade the navigation facility because two runways in the airport had exceeded their design life. The design life of Runway 05/23 had expired 10 years ago, causing maintenance problems.
The budget to renovate the runways was approved by the Council of Economic Planning and Development last year. The total cost for the project is estimated at NT$10.7 billion (US$366 million).
Despite the relatively smooth transition, the real challenges will come next year and in 2013, when the two runways were scheduled to undergo major construction.
Meanwhile, the parking facility serving inbound passengers at the airport’s Terminal One will be reopened tomorrow after being closed for more than a year. The terminal has been in use since the airport became operational in 1979.
TIAC planned to renovate the parking facility and build four new check-in counters inside the terminal during the first phase of the project.
Taiwan yesterday condemned the recent increase in Chinese coast guard-escorted fishing vessels operating illegally in waters around the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島) in the South China Sea. Unusually large groupings of Chinese fishing vessels began to appear around the islands on Feb. 15, when at least six motherships and 29 smaller boats were sighted, the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) said in a news release. While CGA vessels were dispatched to expel the Chinese boats, Chinese coast guard ships trespassed into Taiwan’s restricted waters and unsuccessfully attempted to interfere, the CGA said. Due to the provocation, the CGA initiated an operation to increase
CHANGING LANDSCAPE: Many of the part-time programs for educators were no longer needed, as many teachers obtain a graduate degree before joining the workforce, experts said Taiwanese universities this year canceled 86 programs, Ministry of Education data showed, with educators attributing the closures to the nation’s low birthrate as well as shifting trends. Fifty-three of the shuttered programs were part-time postgraduate degree programs, about 62 percent of the total, the most in the past five years, the data showed. National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU) discontinued the most part-time master’s programs, at 16: chemistry, life science, earth science, physics, fine arts, music, special education, health promotion and health education, educational psychology and counseling, education, design, Chinese as a second language, library and information sciences, mechatronics engineering, history, physical education
The Chinese military has boosted its capability to fight at a high tempo using the element of surprise and new technology, the Ministry of National Defense said in the Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR) published on Monday last week. The ministry highlighted Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) developments showing significant changes in Beijing’s strategy for war on Taiwan. The PLA has made significant headway in building capabilities for all-weather, multi-domain intelligence, surveillance, operational control and a joint air-sea blockade against Taiwan’s lines of communication, it said. The PLA has also improved its capabilities in direct amphibious assault operations aimed at seizing strategically important beaches,
‘MALIGN PURPOSE’: Governments around the world conduct espionage operations, but China’s is different, as its ultimate goal is annexation, a think tank head said Taiwan is facing a growing existential threat from its own people spying for China, experts said, as the government seeks to toughen measures to stop Beijing’s infiltration efforts and deter Taiwanese turncoats. While Beijing and Taipei have been spying on each other for years, experts said that espionage posed a bigger threat to Taiwan due to the risk of a Chinese attack. Taiwan’s intelligence agency said China used “diverse channels and tactics” to infiltrate the nation’s military, government agencies and pro-China organizations. The main targets were retired and active members of the military, persuaded by money, blackmail or pro-China ideology to steal
RSS