Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said China’s controversial new flight route actually has benefits for Taiwan.
Deputy MAC Minister Steve Lin made the comments at the legislature on Tuesday. China launched its new flight route M503 on Sunday which runs about 10 nautical miles near the median line dividing Taiwan and China.
Beijing had moved the new route further west after Taiwan’s objections to its original plan, but the opposition Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) has still been protesting against the route. The TSU said it is boycotting the legislative session over the new flight route and demands that China cancel it.
Ruling Kuomintang lawmaker Lin Yu-fang explained that the M503 flight route is an international route approved by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) to be used for commercial purposes. He also said it is used by many international airlines.
MAC Deputy Minister Steve Lin also said the flight route is now about 10 nautical miles, or about 19 kilometers, from the medial line dividing the Taiwan Strait.
Lin said, "This flight route is for international civilian flights so Chinese military aircraft will not use that route. China has agreed to this. So from the perspective of our air defenses, it actually has Chinese military aircraft moving back 19 kilometers from us. That has increased the distance, and that is better for our air force."
Meanwhile, the Civil Aeronautics Administration indicated that flights in the M503 area did not affect air traffic around Taiwan.