China military drills to disrupt international flights to, from Taiwan

Taipei, Dec. 29 (CNA) China's plans to hold live-fire drills around Taiwan on Tuesday will affect more than 100,000 passengers flying to and from Taiwan on hundreds of international flights, the Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) estimated Monday night.

A total of 84 domestic flights have also been canceled Tuesday, with 68 connecting Taiwan and Kinmen Island and 16 connecting Taiwan and the Matsu Islands, affecting around 6,000 passengers, the agency said in a statement.

For international flights, the CAA warned of delays between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m., when the People's Liberation Army exercises are scheduled to be held, and said they could extend beyond 6 p.m. as a backlog of delayed flights is cleared, affecting more than 100,000 passengers.

The CAA said there will be 296 international flights leaving Taiwan airports and 265 flights arriving at Taiwan airports on Tuesday between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m.

With nearly 300 international flights also scheduled to fly over Taiwan during that time, the CAA said there will be significant restrictions on air routes and airspace within the Taipei Flight Information Region (FIR).

While Taiwan has worked with air traffic control units in adjacent FIRs to put flow control measures in place for Tuesday, significant delays are still expected, the CAA warned.

Airlines have been instructed to inform passengers in advance and ensure they carry sufficient fuel before takeoff, the CAA said.

According to Taoyuan International Airport's flight information system, there were no flights scheduled to depart Tuesday that had been canceled as of Monday night.

The CAA's warning came after the Eastern Theater Command of China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) said early Monday it had begun drills around Taiwan and that they would include live-fire exercises Tuesday until 6 p.m. in designated zones that aircraft and ships should avoid.

Domestically, UNI Air and Mandarin Airlines, Taiwan's two main domestic airlines, said Monday they would cancel or adjust services to Kinmen and Matsu scheduled before 6 p.m. on Tuesday.

UNI Air said on its website that all flights between Taiwan and Matsu would be canceled on Tuesday, while flights on the Kinmen route scheduled before 6 p.m. would be canceled or delayed.

The airline said it would add six extra evening flights on the Kinmen route and urged passengers to check its website or mobile app for the latest updates before heading to the airport.

Mandarin Airlines, meanwhile, said on its website that its flights from Taipei Songshan Airport to Nangan in Matsu would be canceled on Tuesday.

Mandarin Airlines also said its flights from Taiwan to Kinmen scheduled before 6 p.m. Tuesday would be canceled, and that any additional services would be announced on its website.

Matsu and Kinmen are Taiwan-held island groups lying just off China's coast that rely heavily on air travel for links to Taiwan proper, and flight operations can be affected when military drills are held in surrounding airspace.

According to the PLA, the exercises, code-named Justice Mission 2025, are being conducted in the Taiwan Strait and in areas to the north, southwest, southeast and east of Taiwan.

Live-fire drills are scheduled from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday in five designated maritime and airspace zones.

The flight information systems of airports in Taiwan proper serving Kinmen and Matsu, including Taipei Songshan Airport, indicated that domestic flights to the outlying islands operated normally on Monday.