By Shelley Shan / Staff reporter
Airlines can choose routes that best suit their operations based on safety, flight time and costs, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said yesterday after two major Taiwanese carriers on Sunday flew flights through Russian airspace.
China Airlines （CAL, 華航） and EVA Airways （長榮航空） had avoided Russian airspace since its invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
However, CAL Flight CI75 from Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport to Rome entered Russian airspace after taking off early on Sunday morning, marking the first time a Taiwanese carrier had done so in four years.
EVA Airways Flight BR88 from Paris to Taoyuan also flew over Russian airspace.
Minister of Transportation and Communications Chen Shih-kai （陳世凱） told reporters before a meeting of the Legislative Yuan’s Transportation Committee that the Civil Aviation Administration （CAA） oversees the departures and destinations of international flights, while airlines can decide for themselves which routes to take.
Chen was asked whether the airlines had flown through Russian airspace because their requests to fly through Pakistani airspace had been rejected by Pakistan’s aviation authorities.
“The fact that the two airlines were able to fly through Russian airspace means that their applications were approved. They can decide whether to continue using the route,” Chen said. “They can choose routes that best suit their operations after factoring in safety, time and costs. We respect their decisions.”
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Monday said it had no comment on the airlines’ decisions to fly through Russian airspace.
However, it reiterated the government’s strong opposition to any country invading another sovereign nation, adding that Taiwan complies with international sanctions against Russia following its invasion of Ukraine.
Taiwan has been controlling exports of high-tech products to Russia since the war began, the foreign ministry said.
Separately, lawmakers yesterday clashed over Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an’s （蔣萬安） proposal to shutter Taipei International Airport （Songshan airport） and transfer its services to Taoyuan airport.
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Lee Kun-tse （李昆澤） said that the number of passengers using Taoyuan airport is expected to exceed 50 million this year.
Annual passenger traffic could top 83.8 million by 2045, Lee said.
Taoyuan “airport’s first and second terminals are designed to accommodate a maximum of 37 million passengers per year, he said.
The third terminal, once completed, can accommodate an additional 45 million passengers, bringing the airport’s annual capacity to only 82 million, he said.
Taoyuan International Airport Corp （桃園國際機場）, which operates the facility, would begin planning to rebuild the first terminal, which has been in use since 1979, after the third terminal opens, he added.
CAA data show that 5.62 million domestic and international passengers used Songshan airport last year, Lee said.
The agency estimates that daily passenger traffic at Songshan airport could rise to between 22,000 and 29,000 by 2040, he said.
“Imagine Taoyuan airport receiving an additional 20,000 travelers per day. Whether the high-speed rail system, Airport MRT and freeways could handle the additional passenger traffic warrants careful study,” he said.
The two airports differ in the types of aircraft they can accommodate and their ground operations, while Songshan airport is the main medical hub for about 38,000 people from outlying islands each year, he said.
Additional facilities would need to be in place if all flights at Songshan airport were transferred to Taoyuan airport, he added.
Chinese Nationalist Party （KMT） Legislator Hung Meng-kai （洪孟楷） said that the central government should not let its vision for Taipei 10 to 20 years from now be constrained by the “status quo.”
Now is the right time to consider Chiang’s proposal, as Taoyuan airport’s third terminal is scheduled to be completed by the end of next year, Hung said.
Chen said that although the first, second and third terminals could collectively serve 82 million passengers per year, the airport would not immediately reach that capacity because the ministry would begin considering renovations to the first terminal after the third terminal is completed.
A third runway at the Taoyuan facility is scheduled to be completed by 2033. The ministry would then begin renovating the first and second runways once the third runway enters service, he said.
“Taoyuan airport was never designed to serve as a domestic flight hub or a medical evacuation hub. If it were to accommodate domestic flights, its operational efficiency would decrease. The airport would also have to undergo a major redesign. All this work takes time,” he said.
Taoyuan International Airport Corp president Fan Hsiao-lun （范孝倫） said the company plans runway and terminal capacity based on the potential growth in international passenger traffic.
“We have never evaluated the possibility of transferring all flights at Songshan to Taoyuan,” Fan said.
新聞來源：
TAIPEI TIMES