Impact of South Korea’s MERS outbreak: EVA Air reports thousands of flight cancellations

▲ EVA Air announces flight reductions in response to MERS in South Korea. (Photo / Reporter Huang Kexiang)

Reported by Chen Ziying / Taipei

Affected by the MERS outbreak in South Korea, Taiwanese airlines have relaxed refund policies for flights to and from South Korea and have made gradual adjustments to their schedules. China Airlines has announced the suspension of its Kaohsiung–Seoul flights after mid-June, while EVA Air also stated that its June flights to South Korea will remain unaffected, but starting in July, the Kaohsiung–Seoul route will see a reduction in flights.

EVA Air further explained that although there are no changes to the June flight schedule for now, it may replace aircraft with smaller planes depending on the situation to accommodate passengers. For the Kaohsiung–Seoul route, the frequency will be reduced from seven flights per week to two flights per week from July 1 to July 31, and then adjusted again to five flights per week from August 1 to August 31. Uni Air had originally planned to launch its Taichung–Seoul (Incheon) route on July 2, but this has been postponed to October 25.

In response to the outbreak, airlines have relaxed their refund mechanisms according to policy. EVA Air reported that so far, it has received thousands of cancellation requests for flights to South Korea.Passengers who have purchased tickets for flights from Taiwan to South Korea operated by Taiwanese carriers such as China Airlines, EVA Air, and TransAsia Airways can receive a full refund before Friday, June 12, without any handling fees.