OREANDA-NEWS. February 18, 2011. China Airlines (CAL) inaugurated direct scheduled flights between Taoyuan and Wuhan, further expanding its extensive network of flights between both sides of the Taiwan Strait. CAL President Huang-Hsiang Sun personally led a delegation of VIPs on the maiden flight to Wuhan, where they received a warm welcome from the Wuhan government, representatives of the airport and the news media at a special welcoming ceremony organized by the Hubei Airports Group Company. At the grand ceremony, representatives from both sides delivered speeches heralding another major milestone in the opening of direct cross-strait transportation, reported the press-centre of China Airlines.

CAL operates two round-trip flights each week between Taoyuan and Wuhan on Wednesdays and Saturdays, using Airbus 330-300 aircraft equipped with 36 seats in Business Class and 277 seats in Economy Class. Meanwhile, China Airlines cooperates with China Southern Airlines to provide one additional code-shared service from Taoyuan to Wuhan, offering more frequency and convenience for passengers crossing both sides of the Taiwan Strait for business and tourism.

Situated in the heart of central China at the junction of major river, highway and air routes, Wuhan is known as the “super hub of nine provinces.” CAL’s launch of the Taoyuan-Wuhan service has made travel between Taiwan and Hubei Province faster and more convenient than ever, connecting central China’s business and tourism hub to northern, central and southern Taiwan. In addition to China Southern Airlines, CAL also operates codesharing cooperation with Xiamen Airlines, China Eastern and Shanghai Airlines, expanding flight networks with more comfortable and convenient services for both cross-strait passengers and passengers transferring to destinations in Asia, Europe, North America and Oceania.

Including the new Wuhan service, the CAL Group presently operates 76 scheduled passenger flights across the Taiwan Strait every week, serving 17 airports in 16 major cities across mainland China covering the northeast, north, central and southern regions, including Shenyang, Beijing, Qingdao, Zhengzhou, Changsha, Xian, Chengdu, Nanjing, Shanghai (Pudong and Hongqiao), Hangzhou, Ningbo, Xiamen, Fuzhou, Guangzhou and Shenzhen. From the moment passengers step inside the cabin, they can experience CAL’s enthusiasm and warm hospitality, featured through fine cuisine and Taiwan’s unique “tea culture” provided in-flight.