Mon, Jul 07, 2025 page2

• China route W121 would erode Taiwan FIR: expert

  ’GRAY ZONE’ TACTIC? According to a 2015 report, 56% of China’s airspace remains unused, so the new routes seem to be an attempt to infringe upon Taiwan’s airspace

  • By Huang Ching-hsuan and William Hetherington / Staff reporter, with staff writer
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  The activation of flight path W121 would erode Taiwan’s ability to defend its airspace, a Taiwanese military expert said yesterday.

  The Civil Aviation Administration of China announced it would activate the route, which connects with flight path M503 along the median line of the Taiwan Strait.

  The move is part of China’s efforts to “erode the Taipei Flight Information Region [FIR],” Institute for National Defense and Security Research research fellow Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲) said, adding that the FIR is important to Taiwan’s sovereignty and the management of its airspace.

  

  Institute for National Defense and Security Research research fellow Su Tzu-yun, center, speaks to reporters in Taipei in an undated photograph.

  Photo: Taipei Times

  “Flight path M503 is just 6 nautical miles [11.1km] from the median line of the Taiwan Strait. If an aircraft were to deviate from the path due to weather or mechanical issues, Taiwan’s air traffic controllers would have only about 30 seconds to respond,” he said. “This poses a risk to civilian aviation on both sides.”

  China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and its Taiwan Affairs Office have long refused to recognize the significant of the strait’s median line, Su said.

  Although the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) does not officially recognize Taiwan, the existence of the Taipei FIR has long served to symbolize Taiwan’s de facto sovereignty and authority to manage its airspace, he said.

  “According to a 2015 report by then-Chinese premier Li Keqiang [李克強], 56 percent of China’s airspace remains unused,” Su said. “Therefore, the creation of M503 and the connecting routes appear to be deliberate actions to infringe upon Taiwan’s airspace.”

  China established route M503 in 2015, made it bidirectional in 2018 and added connecting routes W121, W122 and W123 last year and this year, he said.

  “These moves follow other ‘gray zone’ tactics by China, including harassment using military aircraft, warships and coast guard vessels,” Su said. “Taiwan should demand accountability from China and push for dialogue on the Taipei FIR, as well as raise the issue internationally.”

  “This situation highlights the necessity and legitimacy of Taiwan joining the ICAO,” he added.

  Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Kuan-ting (陳冠廷) said route M503 pushes civilian air traffic right up to the frontlines in the Taiwan Strait.

  “China is engaging in ‘gray zone’ warfare under the guise of fulfilling civil aviation needs,” he said.

  DPP Legislator Puma Shen (沈伯洋) said the government should promptly seek to engage in dialogue with Beijing.

  “Otherwise, pro-China groups in Taiwan would attempt to create the narrative that the DPP administration refuses to communicate with Beijing,” he said. “This would exacerbate the situation by combining cognitive warfare with these ‘gray zone’ tactics, putting the administration at a disadvantage.”

  Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Lin Yi-chun (林憶君) said that the new flight routes were moves by China to assert dominance over the Taiwan Strait and that it highlights a lack of meaningful cross-strait interaction since President William Lai (賴清德) took office.

  China’s motives were evident in the addition of three connecting routes to M503, despite no real increase in air traffic, Lin said.

  “Every new route established by Beijing adds another layer of risk to Taiwan’s airspace,” she said.

  The government should actively seek to engage in dialogue with China, confirm the necessity and motivations behind the new route and push for the westward shift of the M503 route, the best scenario, to achieve peaceful cross-strait interaction, she said.

  Additional reporting by Lin Che-yuan
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