CAA allows Mandarin Airlines to cut Hualien flights

Taipei, Aug. 27 (CNA) Taiwan's Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) has allowed Mandarin Airlines to reduce flights on two Hualien routes when passenger demand is weak, but has not approved the carrier's request to suspend the services altogether.

Mandarin Airlines had applied to suspend its Kaohsiung-Hualien and Taichung-Hualien routes.

The CAA said Thursday that after reviewing the request, it asked the airline to provide additional information and consider Hualien's transportation needs before ending the routes.

Mandarin Airlines subsequently proposed taking a gradual approach by reducing flights when bookings are poor rather than suspending the services, according to the agency.

The CAA said it had agreed in principle to such reductions, which would allow Mandarin Airlines to redeploy aircraft to busier domestic routes while maintaining air links to Hualien.

However, the airline has yet to formally apply for the reductions, and their extent has not been finalized, the CAA said.

Mandarin Airlines Chairman Chen Ta-chun (陳大鈞) said the carrier is considering reducing its Kaohsiung-Hualien service from seven flights per week to five, while initially maintaining three weekly flights on the Taichung-Hualien route.

If the average load factor on either route falls below 20 percent, the airline could further reduce the Kaohsiung-Hualien service by up to two flights per week and the Taichung-Hualien service by one, Chen said.

Under that plan, Mandarin Airlines would operate at least five flights per week across the two routes.

Chen said the arrangement would give the airline greater flexibility to shift capacity to routes with stronger demand while allowing it to restore flights to Hualien if demand rebounds or other forms of transportation are disrupted.

Meanwhile, the CAA said Uni Air's application, filed in June, to suspend its Taipei-Hualien service remains under review.

Passenger demand on routes serving Hualien has remained weak despite a broader recovery in Taiwan's aviation market following the COVID-19 pandemic.

CAA statistics showed that average load factors between 2023 and 2025 were 36 percent on the Taipei-Hualien route, 37 percent on Kaohsiung-Hualien and 44 percent on Taichung-Hualien.

All three were below 50 percent, placing continued financial pressure on airlines operating the routes.