Cross-Strait Charter Flight Distribution Programs for Mainland Chinese Airlines Identified

As a result of the “Cross-Strait Air Transport Agreement” signed Nov. 4th by the Association for Relations across the Taiwan Strait (ARATS) and the Strait Exchange Foundation (SEF), approved airlines offering service between Taiwan and the Mainland has increased from 6 to 9 carriers. Air China, China Eastern, China Southern Airlines, Hainan Airlines, Xiamen Airlines, Shanghai Airlines, Sichuan Airlines, Shandong Airlines, and Shenzhen Airlines have all received clearances to operate across the strait. These 9 airlines will operate 54 scheduled passenger charter flights a week.
On the mainland, there are 16 approved airports for cross-strait transport, including the major hubs Beijing, Shanghai (Pudong), Guangzhou, Xiamen, Nanjing, and Chengdu, as well as the cities of Chongqing, Hangzhou, Dalian, Guilin, Shenzhen, Wuhan, Fuzhou, Qingdao, Changsha, Haikou, Kunming, Xi’an, Shenyang, Tianjin, and Zhengzhou. Also approved were 3 cargo carriers to provide point-to-point cargo service. China Cargo Airlines, China Southern Airlines and Air China Cargo now have clearance for 10 flights per month into Taiwan.