China and Taiwan to launch weekend direct flights

[S V Choong 4]

TAIPEI (XFN-ASIA) - China and Taiwan agreed today to launch weekend direct charter passenger flights during the first formal talks in a decade between the long-time rivals, a report said.

 

The first services were set for the July 4 weekend while 36 flights were scheduled per weekend between five Chinese airports and eight Taiwanese ones, the United Evening News said, quoting unnamed sources.

 

Some 600 mainland tourists as well as Chinese officials would be among the first passengers on the direct flights, other reports said earlier today.

 

Six airlines from each side were authorized to operate the routes while the number of flights was expected to increase to 72 after the Beijing Olympics, it said.

 

The agreement was in line with proposals by Taiwan, whose new leader Ma Ying-jeou won a landslide presidential victory in March on pledges to improve ties with the mainland.

 

afp/kmq

 

http://www.forbes.com/afxnewslimited/feeds...afx5108641.html

 

兩會多項共識　首班包機下月4日赴台

2008-06-12 HKT 22:41

大陸海協會和台灣海基會在北京，恢復中斷近十年的協商，達成多項協議，周末包機下月四日首航，隨機會有第一團大陸旅客到台灣; 而大陸居民到台灣觀光，下月18日正式實施。

 

大陸赴台旅客每日上限3000人，一年後調整人數。每團10至40人，最多逗留10日。雙方會在奧運後，討論增加航點及航道; 又會互設辦事處，辦理旅遊簽證。

 

兩會亦同意，針對緊急事件，恢復通報機制。

 

http://app1.rthk.org.hk/rthk/news/videonews/

 

 

China, Taiwan begin historic talks

China and Taiwan agreed on Thursday to open representative offices to handle visa issues, despite a lack of diplomatic ties between the two countries, reports here said.

 

The deal was reached in Beijing during the first formal talks in a decade between the long-time rivals, Taiwan delegation spokesman Pang Jian-guo was quoted saying by local station TVBS.

 

The offices will be represented by Taiwan's Straits Exchange Foundation and its mainland counterpart, the Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait. Currently visas between the two are handled in Hong Kong.

 

News of the deal comes as the two rivals began their first formal talks in a decade as part of a rapprochement that is likely to see the development of trade and tourism ties.

 

With big smiles and a warm handshake, the chief negotiators from each side began the two days of talks in Beijing's Diaoyutai State Guesthouse that often serves as China's choice for conducting high-level diplomacy.

 

"As long as we have mutual trust and understanding... these talks are going to become an important communication mechanism for cross-strait development," chief Chinese envoy Chen Yunlin said before the media was ushered out.

 

The talks, suspended since the mid-1990s, are resuming as part of a dramatic warming in relations that began with the election of Ma Ying-jeou as Taiwan's president in March.

 

Ma and his Kuomintang party swept to power promising closer ties with China, following eight years of tensions across the straits as then Taiwan president Chen Shui-bian tried to steer the island closer toward independence.

 

China and Taiwan split at the end of a civil war in 1949, and the mainland's ruling Communist Party ratcheted up threats during Chen's reign that it was prepared to use military force to bring about reunification.

 

But Ma, who began his term in May, has managed to begin letting some steam out of the pressure-cooker environment between China and Taiwan that made their relationship one of the world's potential military flashpoints.

 

Agreement to restart the talks was reached when Chinese President Hu Jintao met Kuomintang chief Wu Poh-hsiung in Beijing last month.

 

That in itself was an historic event, as it was the first meeting between the heads of the ruling parties of each side since Kuomintang forces retreated to the island in 1949 and the communists took power in Beijing.

 

Direct trade and tourism links have been severely restricted ever since, but this week's talks in Beijing are expected to see some tentative steps towards changing that situation.

 

One of the top items on the agenda is establishing regular direct flights between the mainland and China.

 

Except for national holidays, people wanting to travel the less than 200 kilometres (120 miles) from the mainland currently have to make a much longer journey with a stopover in Hong Kong.

 

Taiwan media reported that the two sides will Thursday discuss establishing 18 direct flights a week between China and Taiwan.

 

As many as 3,000 Chinese tourists would be allowed to fly to Taiwan a day, under the plans due to be discussed in Beijing that were first published in the Taiwanese press and carried again in China's state-run media on Thursday.

 

Taiwan is pushing for the first of these visitors to arrive on the island on July 4.

 

Taiwan's chief envoy to the talks, Chiang Pin-kun, also said ahead of the talks that he would raise the issues of starting direct chartered cargo flights and allowing island's financial institutions to operate on the mainland.

Chiang is expected to meet Hu on Friday.

 

China's official Xinhua news agency said agreements on some of the issues being discussed would be formally reached on Friday, the final official day of the dialogue.

 

Ma's overtures are seen to be as much about economic issues as political, because closer ties with China would help inject fresh cash and momentum into Taiwan's economy as it battles the US-led global downturn.

 

The two sides have already built up strong economic links despite the long political freeze. Since 1991, approved Taiwan investment on the mainland has risen by a factor of nearly 60, standing at 9.97 billion US dollars in 2007.

 

http://news.theage.com.au/world/china-taiw...80612-2phm.html

 

Good to see President Ma & Co. is taking action to fulfill his election promises. Improving relationship of both sides are also the interests of Chinese around the globe.

Edited June 13, 2008 by S V Choong

[Jonathan Kong 0]

I think it is a very good news for China and Taiwan travelers... they do not have to go through Macau or Hong Kong. Let's see whether this will eventually lead to total open skies between the two side in the long run... if it does... Macau and Hong Kong will suffer

[Chan CS 0]

How about the flight path? Last time it used to be direct flights during CNY but the flight path is still almost the same as before, that's mean they have to fly down south to Hong Kong first before heading up north to China. Only like recently they introduced the real 'direct' flight during CNY.

[BC Tam 2]

Wow, the end of those ridiculous touch and go's at HKG and Macau already ?!

[S V Choong 4]

I think it is a very good news for China and Taiwan travelers... they do not have to go through Macau or Hong Kong. Let's see whether this will eventually lead to total open skies between the two side in the long run... if it does... Macau and Hong Kong will suffer

 

Not necessarily. When China was "closed" a few decades ago, HK used be the "window" of China, by catering import and export from mainland. Now that China had opened herself to the rest of the world, HK is still success as before if not better. I guess HK will just have to be adaptive and be innovative to adapt to the new change as nothing is taken for granted forever.

 

On a slight note, another big loser might just be the USA from the warming of mainland and Taiwan relationship, which leads some to believe that Uncle Sam is the mastermind of the disruption in Tibet to keep China busy. Taiwan will not need to spend godzillion amount of dollars on defence. The Taiwanese will not have to go through the time wasting compulsory "national service".

[Denny Yen 0]

Good to see President Ma & Co. is taking action to fulfill his election promises.

But he has remained silent about criticising Japanese navy's ramming of a Taiwanese fishing boat in Diaoyutai waters on Monday. Before becoming president, he challenged Ah-Bian gov't to shout to the world "Diaoyutai belongs to ROC!" when Japs erected a lighthouse there.

 

Now, he is not making any public statements...and Taiwanese people are angry that the new gov't is too soft...afraid of the Japs. They demand taking aggressive actions by sending Taiwanese navy to Diaoyutai's waters now to rescue those sailors captured by the Japs.

[S V Choong 4]

兩 會 隔 15 年 再 簽 協 議 　 下 月 開 放 周 末 包 機 與 大 陸 客 遊 台

2008-06-13 HKT 12:14

大 陸 海 協 會 與 台 灣 海 基 會 15 年 來 再 度 簽 訂 歷 史 性 協 議 ， 下 月 開 放 周 末 包 機 及 大 陸 旅 客 到 台 灣 ， 標 誌 兩 岸 關 係 發 展 踏 出 重 要 一 步 。

簽 字 儀 式 早 上 9 時 在 北 京 釣 魚 台 國 賓 館 舉 行 ， 海 基 會 董 事 長 江 丙 坤 與 海 協 會 會 長 陳 雲 林 簽 署 協 議 文 本 。 今 次 是 繼 1993 年 汪 辜 會 談 後 ， 兩 岸 兩 會 再 度 歷 史 性 簽 署 協 議 。

 

根 據 協 議 文 本 ， 下 月 4 日 正 式 推 行 兩 岸 周 末 包 機 ， 每 星 期 五 至 星 期 一 ， 雙 方 會 各 飛 18 個 班 次 ， 即 是 共 36 班 ， 並 會 根 據 市 場 需 求 增 加 。

 

大 陸 方 面 先 開 放 北 京 、 上 海 、 廣 州 、 廈 門 、 南 京 5 個 航 點 ， 稍 後 亦 會 開 放 成 都 、 重 慶 、 杭 州 、 大 連 、 桂 林 及 深 圳 。 台 灣 方 面 同 意 開 放 桃 園 、 高 雄 小 港 、 台 中 清 泉 崗 、 台 北 松 山 、 澎 湖 馬 公 、 花 蓮 、 金 門 、 台 東 八 個 航 點 ， 航 線 暫 時 仍 會 繞 經 香 港 。 任 何 人 持 有 效 證 件 ， 都 可 乘 搭 包 機 ， 兩 岸 航 空 公 司 亦 可 在 對 方 的 航 點 設 立 辦 事 處 。

 

兩 會 又 同 意 周 末 客 運 包 機 推 行 後 ， 3 個 月 內 商 討 貨 運 包 機 ， 並 同 意 盡 快 就 兩 岸 定 期 直 航 協 商 。

 

至 於 大 陸 民 眾 到 台 灣 旅 遊 方 面 ， 旅 客 要 以 組 團 方 式 ， 團 進 團 出 遊 覽 ， 每 團 10 至 40 人 ， 停 留 台 灣 不 超 過 10 日 ， 平 均 每 日 3 千 人 為 限 ， 第 二 年 會 作 調 整 。 根 據 共 識 ， 大 陸 旅 客 的 首 發 團 會 在 下 月 4 日 先 行 到 台 灣 ， 到 下 月 18 起 正 式 開 放 。

 

另 外 ， 兩 會 同 意 互 設 辦 事 處 ， 為 旅 客 提 供 服 務 ， 又 會 簡 化 通 關 手 續 ， 並 各 自 建 立 應 急 協 調 機 制 ， 處 理 旅 遊 糾 紛 、 緊 急 及 突 發 事 件 。 雙 方 承 諾 共 同 監 管 旅 行 社 誠 信 ， 禁 止 零 團 費 ， 及 組 織 旅 客 參 與 有 損 兩 岸 關 係 活 動

 

http://www.rthk.org.hk/rthk/news/expressne...p;55&497777

 

The weekend charter flights will kick start on 4 July 2008, from Fridays to Mondays. Airlines from each side will have up to 18 flights per weekend, which gives a total of 36 flights. The flights will increase according to the demand of the market.

 

Initially, China will open the following ports for Taiwan's tourists and businessmen to mainland on "direct" flights: Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Xiamen and Nanjing. The following cities will be added later: Chengdu, Hangzhou, Dalian, Guilin and Shenzhen. The Taiwanese side will allow mainland visitors to arrive at: Taiwan Taoyuan Airport (formerly Chiang Kai Shek International), Kaoshiung (Hsiao Kang airport), Taichung (Tsing chuan airport), Taipei (Sung Shan airport), Penghu (Ma kung airport), Hualian, Kimmen and Taitung with a total of 8 airports. The flight will route through Hong Kong (Sorry BC Tam!). These weekend charter flights are opened to anyone (any citizen from anywhere in the world?) with the appropriate visas and documents. The airlines from both sides will be allowed to establish offices at the destinations served by them.

 

It is said that "direct" cargo flights will be discussed in 3 months' time. The actual direct flight (without flying past HK) will be discussed in the near future.

 

Everyday, up to 3,000 mainland Chinese visitors will be allowed to visit Taiwan, however, they must enter and depart Taiwan in the form of tour groups. Each group must consist of 10-40 people with a maximum stay of 10 days. These arrangement will be reviewed again next year.

 

(Sorry I am not good at Taiwan's Wades-Giles Chinese to English spellings. I must have misspelled some words)

Edited June 13, 2008 by S V Choong

[H C Chai 4]

The flight will route through Hong Kong

 

I wonder if the plane will be doing a touch and go, or a 'proper' layover? Either way, I just dont get the idea of it Economically and environmenatally, it doesn't make any sense.

[Denny Yen 0]

Both sides have avoided the sticky issue of labeling them as international or domestic flights - solution: they're calling it as "Cross-straits weekend scheduled flights."

 

The flights will not fly a direct line from Taiwanese airports to PRC airports, depending on whether PRC airports are located south or north of the straits, the flights will have to intercept Hong Kong FIR (for southern PRC airports) or Naha FIR (for northern PRC airports).

 

With direct airlinks a/c will not be required to land in HKG or touch & go, they can fly direct into PRC airspace and vv, but they have to stick to existing corridors.

 

For us working on both sides, we have suffered for so long...it takes up to 1/2 day door to door (via HKG). Traveling is less hassle as of July 4, for e.g., XMN-TPE via HKG (now) takes 3.5hrs but after July 4, its only 30mins flight XMN-TPE.

 

Even though this afternoon, both sides have just signed the cross-straits direct air link treaty, the no-fly zones (red boxes) are still in place. Therefore, pilots have to navigate the existing air corridors - there are no suggestions about opening new corridor or removing the red boxes. Taiwanese military maintains movable and immovable patriot missiles. I suppose having restricted/controlled air corridors = easier for military to coordinate air defense.

 

[S V Choong 4]

Denny, have you got any cross-strait flights tickets booked yet?