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'Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport' ( or 臺灣桃園國際機場; ; Tongyong Pinyin: Táiwan Táoyuán Gúojì Jichǎng, Pinyin: Táiwān Táoyuán Gúojì Jīchǎng), formerly 'Chiang Kai-shek International Airport' (; ; Tongyong Pinyin: Jhongjhèng Gúojì Jichǎng; Pinyin: Zhōngzhèng Gúojì Jīchǎng), also known simply as 'Taoyuan Airport' or 'C.K.S. Airport', is an international airport located in Taoyuan County, Taiwan, Republic of China in northern Taiwan. It is the one of the three airports with regular international flights in the ROC (Taiwan), and by far the busiest international air entry point. It is the home base for China Airlines and EVA Air, which both operate a major hub at this airport.
Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport is one of the two airports that serve northern Taiwan, including Taipei. The other is Taipei Songshan Airport located within the Taipei City limits, which serves only domestic flights and rarely, some special international mission flights for the President and Vice President of the Republic of China as well as other international sovereignties' chartered flights. Taipei Songshan Airport formerly served Taipei as its international airport before the opening of Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, then known as Chiang Kai-shek International Airport, in 1979. The other 2 airports with regular international flights in Taiwan are Kaohsiung International Airport (Hsiaogang Airport) and Taichung International Airport, while Hualien Airport and Makung Airport are allowed and occasionally offer international charters.

Contents

Origin of the name

History

Disasters

Airlines and destinations

Terminal 1

Terminal 2

Cargo airlines

Aviation Museum

See also

References

External links

Origin of the name

The airport, planned as the Taoyuan International Airport, wore the name of late President of the Republic of China (Taiwan) Chiang Kai-shek until 2006. In Chinese its former name was Chung-Cheng (Zhongzheng), the style name that Chiang Kai-shek chose for himself during his political career. The title is rendered without his surname, a traditional gesture of respect. In a situation roughly analogous to those affecting Ronald Reagan-Washington National Airport and, for many years, Cape Kennedy in the US, political associations connected with the name led some people to avoid using it. In Taiwan Chiang Kai-shek is associated with the Chinese Nationalist Party or Kuomintang and its many years of one-party authoritarian rule. Local officials in Taoyuan County and members of the pan-Green coalition often referred to the hub by the name originally associated with it, "Taoyuan International Airport." News organizations and local residents sometimes combined the two commonly used names as "Taoyuan Chung-Cheng Airport."
The Executive Yuan of President Chen Shui-bian's administration officially approved the name ''Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport'' for the hub on September 6, 2006^[1]. The opposition Kuomintang, which together with its political allies held a one-vote majority in the Legislative Yuan, decried the change and proposed "Taiwan Taoyuan Chiang Kai-shek International Airport" instead^[2]. The disagreement, like those affecting the names of Memorial Hall and other Taiwan landmarks, stands as another manifestation of the trend known as Taiwan localization among pan-Green officials and desinicization by pan-Blues.
In mainland China, ever since the airport was built, the mainland Chinese media always refer it to as the "Taoyuan International Airport", so that they can avoid to mention the former KMT's leader's name - the archenemy of the Chinese communist party. so most of the mainland Chinese never knew the real name of this airport.

History

The airport opened (with Terminal 1) on February 21, 1979 as part of the Ten Major Construction Projects pursued by the government in the 1970s. The airport was originally planned under the name 'Taoyuan International Airport' but was later changed to 'Chiang Kai-shek International Airport' in memory of former President of the Republic of China (Taiwan) Chiang Kai-shek.
The airport is the main hub of China Airlines, the ROC (Taiwan)'s flag carrier as well as EVA Air, a private airline established in the early 1990s. Overcrowding of the airport in recent years prompted the construction of Terminal 2, which was opened on July 29 2000 with half of the gates operational. Eva Air was the first airline to move into Terminal 2. The other half opened on January 21, 2005 for China Airlines^[3]. There are plans for the construction of a third terminal, which will be built as a replacement for the aging Terminal 1. It is rumored that all international flights will be moved to Terminal 3 and Terminal 1 will be renovated into a domestic terminal. Construction on Terminal 3 is expected to begin in 2008^[4].
A rapid transit line connecting the airport to the national capital, Taipei City is under construction, which will link Terminals 1, 2, and in the future, 3, together.
In January 2006, a 'Foreign Laborers' Service Center' was set up^[5] to provide airport pick-up services and serve the needs of migrant workers. There are service desks in the Arrival lobby of Terminal 1 and Terminal 2, and in the Departure lobby of Terminal 1. Service hotlines in the Vietnamese, Thai, English, and Indonesian languages are provided.

Disasters

Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport was one of the airports targeted by the failed Project Bojinka plot in 1995.
On February 16, 1998, China Airlines Flight 676, which was arriving from Denpasar-Bali International Airport, Indonesia, crashed into a residential area while landing in poor weather, killing all 196 people on board and six on the ground.
On October 31, 2000, Singapore Airlines Flight 006, which was on a Singapore Changi Airport, Singapore-Taipei-Los Angeles International Airport, Los Angeles route rammed into construction equipment on a closed runway during takeoff from Taipei, crashing back onto the runway and killing 82 passengers and crew.
On May 25, 2002, China Airlines Flight 611 broke up in mid-flight on the way to Hong Kong International Airport in Hong Kong from Chiang Kai-Shek Airport, as it was known then. All 225 people on board died.

Airlines and destinations

Terminal 1

Shows the inside of the terminal after renovations and new lighting.


Terminal 1 is the original passenger terminal of the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport. The terminal, along with the airport, opened in 1979 as a relief to the overcrowded Taipei Songshan Airport. All international flights moved to the airport following the completion of this terminal. Terminal 1 featured 22 gates. A row of 11 gates are located on the north end of the airfield facing the north runway and another row of 11 gates are located on the south end airfield facing the south runway. The two concourses that contained the airplane gates are linked together by a main building that contained the check-in areas, baggage claim, passport immigration areas, and security checkpoint areas. Together they form a giant "H". All gates are equipped with jetways. Gates located at the end of the concourses have one jetway and gates not located at the end of the concourses have two jetways.
Terminal 1 is also currently undergoing a $42 million dollar renovation that is expected to be completed by 2008. The renovation includes a new facelift, designed by Japanese architect Norihiko Dan, and a new modern and stylish interior. The renovation will be completed during late hours to avoid congestion during peak hours, and is expected to be finished in three years.
The design of Terminal 1 was based on the main terminal of the Washington Dulles International Airport.
After Terminal 2 was completed, some gates from Terminal 1 were removed to make space for Terminal 2. Currently Terminal 1 has 18 gates^[6].
Alphabetical letters were introduced when Terminal 1 was completed. The north concourse is now Concourse A and the south concourse is now Concourse B. Before Terminal 2, gates were numbered from 1 to 22.
China Airlines flights to and from Europe ,Southeast Asia and South Korea are located in Terminal 1.
Airlines using this terminal:

★ Angkor Airways (Seam Reap)

★ Air Macau (Macau)

★ Cathay Pacific (Fukuoka, Hong Kong, Nagoya-Centrair, Osaka-Kansai, Seoul-Incheon, Tokyo-Narita)

★ Cebu Pacific (Manila, Manila-Clark [pending gov't approval])

★ China Airlines (Abu Dhabi, Amsterdam, Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi, Chiang Mai, Denpasar/Bali, Frankfurt, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Hong Kong, Phuket, Jakarta, Kaohsiung, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, New Delhi, Penang, Phnom Penh, Rome-Fiumicino, Seoul-Incheon, Singapore, Vienna)

★
★ Mandarin Airlines (Asahikawa, Cebu, Hakodate, Ishigaki, Miyazaki, Nagasaki, Subic, Toyama, Wajima, Yangon)

★ Jetstar Asia (Singapore)

★ Korean Air (Seoul-Incheon)

★ Malaysia Airlines (Kota Kinabalu, Kuala Lumpur, Los Angeles)

★ Palau Trans Pacific (Palau)

★ Philippine Airlines (Manila)

★ Thai Airways International (Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi, Hong Kong, Phuket, Seoul-Incheon)

★ TransAsia Airways (Busan, Jeju, Kota Kinabalu, Macau)

★ Vietnam Airlines (Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City)

Terminal 2

Terminal 2 opened in 2000 to reduce congestion in the aging Terminal 1. Only the South Concourse had been completed by the time the terminal opened. The South Concourse alone has 10 gates, each with 2 jetways and their own security checkpoints. The check-in areas, baggage claim, and passport stations are located in the new main building. The North Concourse (row of gates) opened later in 2005, bringing the total number of gates for Terminal 2 to 20 gates. The security checkpoint has been moved to the front of the passport stations.
The Southern and Northern Concourses are also known as Concourse C and Concourse D, respectively. Because Terminal 2 was built 20 or more years later than Terminal 1, Terminal 2 has a more modern and stylish interior than Terminal 1. Terminals 1 and 2 are connected by two short people mover lines, with one from Concourse A to C, and the other from B to D.
China Airlines flights to and from the US, Canada, Australia, Japan, and Guam are located in Terminal 2.
Airlines using this terminal:

★ All Nippon Airways

★
★ Air Nippon (Nagoya-Centrair, Tokyo-Narita)

★ Asiana Airlines (Seoul-Incheon)

★ Cathay Pacific

★
★ Dragonair (Hong Kong)

★ China Airlines (Anchorage, Brisbane, Fukuoka, Guam, Hiroshima, Honolulu, Houston-Intercontinental, Los Angeles, Nagoya-Centrair, New York-JFK, Okinawa, Osaka-Kansai, San Francisco, Sapporo-Chitose, Seattle/Tacoma, Sydney, Tokyo-Narita, Vancouver)

★ EVA Air (Amsterdam, Auckland, Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi, Brisbane, Denpasar/Bali, Fukuoka, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Hong Kong, Honolulu, Jakarta, Kaohsiung, Kuala Lumpur, London-Heathrow, Los Angeles, Macau, Manila, Mumbai, Nagoya-Centrair, Newark, Osaka-Kansai, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Phnom Penh, San Francisco, Sapporo-Chitose, Seattle/Tacoma, Sendai, Seoul-Incheon, Singapore, Surabaya, Tokyo-Narita, Vancouver, Vienna, Vientiane)

★
★ Uni Air (Kaohsiung)

★ Far Eastern Air Transport (Danang, Jeju, Manila-Clark, Palau, Siem Reap)

★ Japan Airlines

★
★ Japan Asia Airways (Nagoya-Centrair, Osaka-Kansai, Tokyo-Narita)

★ KLM (Amsterdam, Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi)

★ Northwest Airlines (Detroit, Osaka-Kansai)

★ Pacific Airlines (Ho Chi Minh City)

★ Singapore Airlines (Los Angeles, Singapore)

★ United Airlines (Chicago-O'Hare, San Francisco, Tokyo-Narita)

Cargo airlines

★ Atlas Air (operated for Emirates)

★ China Airlines Cargo (Abu Dhabi, Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi, Kuala Lumpur,Luxembourg, Stockholm-Arlanda)

★ EVA Air Cargo

★ FedEx

★ UPS

★ Japan Airlines

★
★ Japan Asia Airways(Osaka-Kansai,Tokyo-Narita)

★ Cathay Pacific Cargo

★ Air Macau (operated for Kuzu Airlines Cargo)

★ Northwest Airlines

★ DHL

★ Singapore Airlines Cargo

★ Malaysia Airlines

★ Dragonair

★ CargoLux

Aviation Museum

The 'Chung Cheng Aviation Museum' () is located on the south-eastern area of the airport between the main freeway entrance and the terminals. It was built in 1981 by Boeing under CAA contract^[7]. Many retired Republic of China Air Force fighters are represented here. The Chung Cheng Aviation Museum is the only major aviation museum in Taiwan.

See also

★ Kaohsiung International Airport

★ Taipei Songshan Airport

★ Transportation in Taiwan

★ Ten Major Construction Projects

References

1. Signboard replacement to reflect airport name-change gets underway
Cabinet approves new name for Taiwan's main international airport
ATVnews (Hong Kong, Traditional Chinese)
BBC (Traditional Chinese)
2. CKS AIRPORT SHOULD BE RENAMED 'TAIWAN TAOYUAN CKS AIRPORT': KMT
3. About the D Concourse of Terminal 2 China Airlines
4. Terminal 3 Information Airport Technology
5. Opening of Foreign Laborer’s Service Center Chiang Kai-Shek International Airport
6. Taipei Taoyuan International Airport- Basic Information
7. Museum Info - Taoyuan County Government Website (Trad. Chinese)

External links

★ Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport Homepage