Far Eastern Air Transport’s ATR Makes Inaugural Flight to Penghu, Expected to Alleviate Spring Festival Travel Rush

Far Eastern Air Transport’s new ATR aircraft made its inaugural flight from Kaohsiung to Magong on the 13th. Ko Chen-wen (right), Director of Kaohsiung City Tourism Bureau, and Li Cheng-chung (left), General Manager of Far Eastern Air Transport, hold up pineapples and radishes in celebration. (Photo by Ko Tsung-wei)

Far Eastern Air Transport’s new ATR aircraft made its inaugural flight from Kaohsiung to Magong on the 13th. Kaohsiung City Tourism Bureau gave gifts to passengers on the inaugural flight. (Photo reproduction by Ko Tsung-wei)

Far Eastern Air Transport’s new ATR aircraft made its inaugural flight from Kaohsiung to Magong on the 13th. The doubled number of flights is expected to alleviate the Spring Festival travel rush. (Photo reproduction by Ko Tsung-wei)

Far Eastern Air Transport’s new ATR aircraft made its inaugural flight from Kaohsiung to Magong on the 13th. The doubled number of flights is expected to alleviate the Spring Festival travel rush. (Photo reproduction by Ko Tsung-wei)

Offshore island travel during the Spring Festival travel season has always been heavily booked. Far Eastern Air Transport introduced its second ATR72-600 aircraft, which officially entered service today (13th). The inaugural flight on the Kaohsiung-Magong route was fully booked. Together with the first ATR aircraft already in service since November last year and three MD flights, there are now six daily flights, increasing seat capacity by 40%. The second wave of additional Spring Festival flights is expected to open for booking on the 16th, which is expected to help alleviate the return travel rush.

Li Cheng-chung, General Manager of Far Eastern Air Transport, pointed out that two new ATR-600 aircraft were introduced in 2017, each with 70 seats. One began operating routes between Taichung, Magong, and Kinmen last November, while the other joined the Kaohsiung-Magong route yesterday, adding three ATR flights per day. Far Eastern plans to introduce two to three ATRs annually, totaling nine to 11 aircraft, to meet domestic route capacity needs.

Li Cheng-chung stated that the “Weekend GO” promotion is currently available. From 6 PM every Friday until 8 AM Monday, passengers who book on the Far Eastern Air Transport website or mobile app can enjoy a super value 31% discount (69% of the original price). The Kaohsiung-Magong route starts at just NT$1,015, and the Kaohsiung-Kinmen route starts at NT$1,233. Official new fares are expected to be announced in April, but prices will be similar to those of Mandarin Airlines and Uni Air, pending approval by the Civil Aeronautics Administration.

With the Lunar New Year approaching next month, Far Eastern Air Transport is confident about handling the Spring Festival travel rush. Li Cheng-chung said that seat availability will definitely be higher than last year, with all routes combined able to carry nearly 30,000 passengers. He also reminded that the second wave of additional Spring Festival flights to offshore islands will open for booking uniformly from 6 PM to 8 PM on the 16th, and the public is encouraged to take advantage of this.

Far Eastern stated that all future Taiwan offshore island routes will be operated by ATR aircraft, which are the most economical and fuel-efficient. Considering the off-season for offshore island tourism, they will evaluate opening new routes. Far Eastern’s fleet has recently undergone renewal, with two ATRs introduced in September last year, another two introduced this year for offshore island routes, and plans to introduce A320 and A321 aircraft for international routes next year.

The inaugural ATR Kaohsiung-Magong flight was held today at Kaohsiung Airport, with attendees including Ko Chen-wen, Director of Kaohsiung City Tourism Bureau, and Wu Ying-liang, Chairman of the Kaohsiung City Travel Agents Association, among others, offering congratulations. Passengers on the first flight received inaugural flight gifts from Far Eastern, and Kaohsiung City Tourism Bureau also provided passengers arriving in Kaohsiung from Magong with a tourist brochure and folder as welcome gifts.