By Eryk Michael Smith/Staff
KAOHSIUNG — Taiwan’s transport ministry is in talks with Mandarin Airlines on domestic charter flights to Pingtung’s Hengchun Airport, amid a local campaign to restore air links that would cut travel time to the Kenting resort area. A youth-led petition urges a phased restart of the Taipei Songshan–Hengchun route using charters and seasonal schedules. (Yahoo News)
Hengchun Airport, 15–20 minutes from Kenting National Park, has struggled with wind and infrastructure limits. Debates about what to do with the currently mothballed airport have gone on for years. In 2020, Philippine carrier Platinum Skies did a Manila–Hengchun test landing. (Yahoo News). In the years following that test-run, assessments were made and ideas such as dual “military–civilian” use were suggested, but nothing has materialized. (aimPortal)
Calls to reopen Hengchun Airport (恆春機場) are now coming not only from local lawmakers, but also from local youth civic groups. Hsiao-Kai (小楷), co-founder of the Southern Youth Association (南國青年會), recently put forth a petition urging a phased restoration of the Songshan–Hengchun (松山—恆春) air route, which he said was once considered “the most beautiful flight path in Taiwan.”
The air route, Hsiao claimed, was suspended for three main reasons:
- Underdeveloped domestic demand at the time
- The High-Speed Rail (高鐵) becoming the main transport mode
- And, seasonal winds known as luòshān winds (落山風).
However, in Hsiao and his group’s view, these conditions have since changed, and all that’s needed is administrative coordination and route authorization. He proposed a three-phase approach: non-scheduled charters, summer scheduled charters, and finally seasonal flights.
The desire for better north-south transportation equity has been gaining traction. Late last week, lawmakers representing Tainan, Kaohsiung, and Pingtung held a press conference calling for a new, 24-hour international airport to serve some 5.4 million residents of those combined areas. At the press conference, legislator Hsu Fu-kuei (徐富癸) noted that northern Taiwan takes 72.5 percent of all foreign tourist traffic, leaving only 27.5 percent for the rest of the country. He said a concrete strategy to direct travelers south is needed, so that visitors can discover the beauty of places across his native Pingtung (屏東).
Deep Dive/Background Info:
- Costing some NT$540 million to build, Hengchun Airport opened to the public in January 2004.
- Following the opening of the High-Speed Rail in 2007, the number of passengers using the airport saw a sharp decline.
- The airport has not processed any passengers since August 2014. The airport only served around 768 passengers in 2014, compared to 23,000 passengers in its inaugural year of 2004.
- In 2019, the last route was cancelled.
- Local advocates argue conditions have shifted: Kenting’s tourism base is strong, and a Songshan link—or even a Taoyuan feeder service for inbound visitors—could restore “north–south air equity.” The petition proposes a three-stage model: ad hoc charters, summer-scheduled charters, and seasonal flights. (PTT)
- On Sept. 21, 2020, a Platinum Skies Dornier 328 conducted a non-stop, no-deplaning test at Hengchun to validate procedures, part of Pingtung County’s airport “revival” effort during COVID restrictions. No commercial service followed. (中央社 CNA)
- Taiwan’s Ministry of Transportation and Communications (交通部) says its three-year “Beihui Summit (北回之巔)” tourism plan has been submitted to the Executive Yuan (行政院). The program focuses on upgrading southern destinations and coordinating cultural and environmental zones, including Minnan villages (閩村), Hakka communities (客庄), Indigenous regions (原鄉), rural areas (農村), and fishing villages (漁村).
- Any restart of the Hengchun Airport will hinge on carrier economics, crosswind seasonality, and whether limited facilities can support reliable operations. (PTT)
Key sources
Liberty Times/Yahoo repost: youth petition; MOTC–Mandarin charter talks; cabinet tourism plan. (Yahoo News)
PTT Aviation board summary of the same report, including phased restart concept. (PTT)
CAA AIP (RCKW): operating window; “special airport” note; runway 14/32 usage. (aimPortal)
Hengchun Airport official data: runway length and facilities. (Healthcare Agency)
2020 test flight: CNA, Taipei Times, Taiwan News; ANWS event note; Platinum Skies video. (中央社 CNA)
