Taipei: Plumes of water from fire-fighting vehicles greeted the arrival of Emirates’ inaugural flight to Taipei on Monday, making the Taiwanese capital the 16th destination for the airline in the Far East.
There was a local media frenzy as the aircraft landed at the Taoyuan International Airport and dignitaries and other passengers made their way to the terminal building.
In a brief address to the assembled journalists and Taiwanese officials at the colourful welcoming ceremony, Shaikh Ahmad Bin Saeed Al Maktoum, President of Dubai Civil Aviation, Chairman and Chief Executive of Emirates airline and Group and Chairman of Dubai Airports, expressed his gratitude to the Taiwan Airport Authority. “This partnership between Emirates and Taipei goes back 11 years, when Emirates Sky Cargo first connected the UAE and Taiwan. Given the demand ... for travel to Taipei, it was only a matter of time until we started our passenger service.” Yin Chen-Pong, Chairman of Taoyuan International Airport, was also by his side.
Shaikh Ahmad said that the newly-launched route would bring Taiwanese consumers much closer to the UAE and the Middle East, and vice-versa, encouraging new opportunities for both business and tourism, in-bound and outbound.
Emirates will now fly daily, non-stop to Taipei, using a Boeing 777-300ER on the route. This will be the first non-stop connection between Taipei and the Middle East.
