Increasing flights to Prague, Vienna a top priority: CAL president

Hamburg, Germany, Dec. 9 (CNA) Taiwan-based China Airlines (CAL) will prioritize adding direct flights to Prague and Vienna in the second half of 2025 due to increasing demand, CAL President Kao Shing-hwang (高星潢) said.

During an interview in Hamburg, Germany, Kao said CAL flights to Europe this year have been more than 85 percent full and that 80 percent of seats over the Christmas peak season have been sold.

He added that the airline is now looking to increase the number of flights to the continent.

He further explained that the goal was to increase the number of flights to Prague from two to five per week in the second half of 2025 and to Vienna from four to six per week. In total, CAL aims to have 30 flights to Europe weekly.

However, he noted that adding more flights depended on when new aircraft were delivered.

CAL is the only airline that operates direct flights from Taipei to Prague. Since the launch of the flights in 2023, the occupancy rate has reached 90 percent.

Kao noted that as well as tourists, the route has also attracted business travelers from nearby cities including the German cities of Nuremberg and Dresden. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. recently set up a factory in the latter.

China Airlines currently flies to six places in Europe from Taiwan: Amsterdam in the Netherlands, Frankfurt in Germany, Vienna in Austria, London in the United Kingdom, Rome in Italy and Prague in the Czech Republic. It is the Taiwanese airline with the most destinations and direct flights to Europe.

Overall, CAL has 82 aircraft in its fleet, with 560 flights per week.

In related news, CAL reported that its net profit in the third quarter of this year hit NT$10.37 billion (US$319.67 million), the highest in its nearly 65 years of operations. Earnings per share stood at NT$1.71.

It also reported consolidated revenues of NT$150.93 billion in the first three quarters of this year, following stable demand from passengers and increased cargo flight operations.

Kao noted that due to peak season effects in the fourth quarter, yearly profits are expected to remain high.

The president said "I hope employees will be very satisfied," when asked if year-end bonuses would break the record of six months of salary, without elaborating.