China’s recent live-fire military exercises in waters and airspace around Taiwan have forced many passenger flights in the country’s vicinity to take different routes but have not forced many cancellations of flights to and from Taiwan.
The number of flights passing through the Taipei Flight Information Region (FIR) to non-Taiwan destinations has shrunk significantly since China’s drills started on Aug. 4, from 150 Thursday to 40 Friday and 60 Saturday, compared with 300-plus flights normally, Transportation Ministry data showed Sunday.
The affected flights took alternative routes, passing either through the Fukuoka FIR or Manila FIR, according to the ministry’s Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA).
There were no major changes, however, in air traffic to and from Taiwan airports over the past few days, with the number of inbound and outbound flights holding steady at around 150 in each direction over the past few days, the ministry said in a statement.
The military exercises launched by China that have been widely condemned by countries around the world followed a short visit to Taipei by U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi that concluded on Aug. 3.
The drills, which had been expected to end Sunday but may be extended, are taking place in six zones around Taiwan, and are also affecting how ships get to Taiwan.
The ministry said 117 ships arrived in and 119 departed from seven harbors in Taiwan on Aug. 6, about the daily average, but ships using ports in Keelung, Taipei and Kaohsiung have been forced to re-route to avoid the zones where the drills are being held, the ministry said.
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel