United Airlines plans to launch direct flights between Taipei and Guam on April 2 next year, the US airline and the Guam Visitors Bureau announced on Monday.
The travel market on the island has recovered to 60 percent of pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels, Guam Lieutenant Governor Joshua Tenorio said.
Tenorio said he hopes that the direct flight services would contribute to growth in the travel market in Guam and facilitate the travel of Guamanians seeking medical attention overseas.
Photo: CNA
Taiwan could be a new vacation spot for US Army members and their families stationed in Guam, he added.
The new service would connect the two most beautiful travel destinations in the Asia-Pacific region, United Airlines director of sales for Japan, Micronesia, Philippines and Taiwan Kenichi Kiriyama said.
“As the capital of Taiwan, Taipei has a population of 2.5 million and is the country’s cultural and economic center. We hope that it could become our transit hub for our travelers from Southeast Asia,” he said.
The airline said it is planning to use Boeing 737-800 aircraft to provide two weekly flights between Taipei and Guam, departing on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
The flight schedule is subject to approval from aviation authorities, the airline said.
Last month, China Airlines announced that it would temporarily resume Taipei-Guam flights from Wednesday next week to Feb. 2 next year due to strong demand.
It would offer two flights per week between Taipei and Guam on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
In other news, the number of air travelers accessing Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport should return to pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels next year as a result of exponential growth of the number of travelers to and from East Asia and North America, Taoyuan International Airport Corp (TIAC) said yesterday.
As of September, the airport had been accessed by 39 million travelers this year, TIAC vice president Tony Yu (余崇立) told a news conference in Taipei, adding that the number could exceed 40 million by Monday next week.
Should growth proceed at the current rate, the number of travelers accessing the Taoyuan airport this year could even reach 45 million, Yu said.
“The number of air travelers accessing the Taoyuan airport would return to the pre-COVID-19 pandemic level next year,” Yu said.
In 2019, the airport was accessed by 48.68 million travelers, he added.
The factors that would fuel the growth in air travelers next year are strong recovery of the number people traveling to and from North America and East Asia, which has surpassed pre-pandemic levels, as well as new services to North America launched by Taiwanese airlines, Yu said.
The airport has also seen significant growth in travelers to Southeast Asia and transit passengers, Yu said.
Before the pandemic, transit passengers only accounted for about 10 percent of the airport’s passenger volume, Yu said.
However, since the borders reopened, 15 to 17 percent of the airport’s passengers have been people making a transit, with most of them arriving from the Philippines, Vietnam or Thailand, he said.
The airport’s operational efficiency is expected to be greatly enhanced with the launch of the north concourse of Terminal 3 in June next year, which would have eight new boarding gates, Yu said.
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