Taipei, April 15 (CNA) International flights to and from Taiwan will decline by an average of 52.6 per week in May, roughly 1.7 percent of those originally scheduled, due to surging global fuel prices, according to data from the Civil Aviation Administration (CAA).
An average of 3,029 international flights are scheduled to either depart or arrive in Taiwan each week during the summer flight schedule from March 29 to Oct. 31 this year, according to CAA data presented by opposition Kuomintang (KMT) Legislator Wan Mei-ling (萬美玲) at a legislative hearing on Wednesday.
April is currently averaging 7.3 canceled flights from this schedule per week, accounting for approximately 0.2 percent of the total, Wan said.
Cancellations will increase to 52.6 flights per week in May, and drop to one per week in July and August, the lawmaker said.
"Airlines' flight cuts and mergers will deal a heavy blow to passengers," Wan said, referring to carriers canceling or combining flights to ease operational pressure resulting from rising global fuel prices.
Wan asked officials at the hearing, including Transportation Minister Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱), whether the government could guarantee no further flight cuts in the upcoming peak travel season.
In response, Chen said his ministry cannot require airlines to avoid cutting flights, but will work to understand their challenges and offer assistance where possible to minimize reductions.
CPC Corp., Taiwan, announced on April 1 that the price of aviation fuel for international flight routes had reached US$1.2816 per liter (about NT$41), marking a 122 percent increase since the start of the war in the Middle East.
Aviation fuel for domestic routes stood at NT$44.2 per liter, up 116 percent, significantly raising airlines' operating costs, according to the Ministry of Transportation and Communications (MOTC)
In a report presented at Wednesday's hearing, the MOTC said that fuel supplies from CPC and the privately-owned Formosa Petrochemical Corp. remain stable.
However, at airports in a small number of countries, including Myanmar, Vietnam, and the Philippines, some fuel suppliers have begun imposing restrictions, prohibiting refueling beyond the previous monthly average, though airlines are not entirely barred from refueling in those countries, it said.
As a result, currently the sharp rise in fuel costs remains the primary factor affecting airline operations, the ministry said.
