Government and Policy

More terminals, flights across Strait during Festival

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-12-30 14:58
Large Medium Small

BEIJING: The Chinese mainland and Taiwan will add more terminals and flights to cope with increasing demand of travelers during the Chinese New Year, said a mainland official here Wednesday.

Taiyuan, Chuangchun, Nanning and Yantai would be added as regular cross-Strait terminals in the mainland, said Fan Liqing, spokesperson for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, at a regular press conference.

This would increase the number of mainland terminals to 31, she said.

Related readings:
More terminals, flights across Strait during Festival Chen-Chiang talks open new era for cross-Strait ties
More terminals, flights across Strait during Festival Cross-strait tourism exchange offices to be set up
More terminals, flights across Strait during Festival 5th Cross-Strait Travel Fair Opens
More terminals, flights across Strait during Festival Cross-Strait plea: Keep it peaceful

The number of flights would also increase from 270 weekly. From January 31 to February 28, at least 44 flights would be added weekly between the four mainland terminals of Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Taiwan terminals, she said.

"At the other terminals, the airline companies can decide how many to be added," Fan said.

But at most 12 flights would be added at SonShan Airport in Taipei, she said.

Since July, 2008, the two sides have raised the regularity of aviation services from weekend charters to daily flights. They also opened three direct air routes across the Taiwan Strait, ending the situation that prevailed since 1949 that flights had to transfer through a third place.

Fan said cross-Strait flights carried about 2.6 million passengers and 46,000 tonnes of cargo from July last year to October this year.

"About 70 percent of seats at passenger flights were sold on average," she said.