Taiwan's airspace to be opened to corporate and private aircraft

June 30, 2004

The Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA), following recommendations from foreign businesses and the aeronautics industry, has decided to open Taiwan's airspace to corporate and private aircraft, and is in the process of drafting necessary regulations.

In addition to pressure from business and industry, other developments have made private aircraft a possibility in Taiwan. The economic slowdown of the last few years has led to a sharp reduction in the number of domestic flights, leaving Taiwan's skies less crowded. And, with Taiwan's High Speed Railway scheduled to begin rolling in October 2005, we are sure to see an even greater decline in the number of flights.

Current draft regulations provide clear definitions of corporate and private aircraft in order to distinguish them from aircraft operated by the current civil air transport industry. According to these regulations, a corporate aircraft is an airplane or helicopter able to seat up to nineteen passengers that provides passenger services for a single client, and for which payment is collected based on time, distance or number of flights, rather than through open ticket sales. A private aircraft is an airplane or helicopter owned by a citizen or juridical person of the Republic of China that makes only noncommercial flights.

The regulations call for the opening of this sector to be paced over three stages. Corporate and private aircraft will be permitted to use purely civilian airports in the first stage and airfields used by both civilian and military aircraft in the second stage. The third stage will see the use of Taipei's Songshan Airport for international flights and the permitting of takeoffs and landings at privately operated airstrips.

The CAA is also working on the drafting and revision of related laws in order to prepare for the opening of this sector.

Corporate aircraft will only be permitted to carry passengers and will be prohibited from transporting cargo in order to avoid conflicts with the air freight industry. Those air carriers that also provide corporate aircraft services will also see their minimum capitalization requirement increased from the current NTD 50 million to NTD 250 million.

There are no explicit regulations governing the purchase of private aircraft. The regulations simply require that owners obtain a letter of consent for the parking of their aircraft at an airfield and submit it to the CAA for approval.

However, due to considerations of air safety, the operation of aircraft over ten years old will be prohibited. In times of emergency, private aircraft may be subject to the instructions of the Ministry of Transportation and Communications and be used for transport purposes, and may be ordered to be grounded as is required for national security or military needs. The draft regulations also grant priority usage of airspace and airfield resources to public transport aircraft. (CASID, China Times)

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