Last Friday, Taiwan-based carrier China Airlines expanded its reach into the Philippines by launching a new service to Cebu, the country's second-largest city. The airline uses its newest Airbus A321neo on the route, which will operate four times weekly.
China Airlines (CAL) was already flying from Taipei and Kaohsiung to Manilla, and with the new services to Cebu, it will offer 21 weekly flights to the Philippines. Flight C1705 departs Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport (TPE) on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday at 07:40, with arrival in Cebu Mactan International Airport (CEB) at 10:35, after a 2:30 hour flight.
Getting to Cebu in style
Today it was flown with an Airbus A321neo, registered B18109 and MSN 10915, delivered to the airline in June this year. The return flight is scheduled to depart at 11:35 and land in Taipei at 14:30. The A321neo is configured for 180 seats, including 12 in Premium Business Class and 168 in economy.
In addition to generating point-to-point traffic, CAL is looking to capture transit passengers on their way to Cebu, a popular destination for international travelers, including those from North America. Cebu, also known as the Queen City of the South, is the first new destination to be added by China Airlines in the post-COVID era.
Based on data from ch-aviation.com, CAL has 55 of its 69 passenger aircraft in-service. These include eight Airbus A321neos, 15 A330-300s, 13 A350-900s, nine Boeing 737-800s and 10 777-300ERs. It also has 12 Boeing 747-400FSCD and four 777-200F freighters in operation, with another six 747s on the inactive list. The fleet's average age is 8.5 years, with the A321neos being less than a year old and the 747-400Fs averaging 19.2.
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Clean and Green Cusine on the A321neo
The inaugural Cebu flight was met with the traditional water canon salute, while the passengers each received a gift pack containing an eco-friendly shell cotton net bag and the new China Airlines 2023 desktop calendar. On the ground, they were greeted with a welcome necklace and dried mango slices.
Speaking of food, also on December 1st, Air China introduced its Clean and Green Plant-based Cuisine. The airline has partnered with food and beverage brand Yang Ming Spring, a winner of the Michelin Green Star for two consecutive years. Yang Ming Sing is a long-standing advocate for plant-based food and beverages and insists on using local, hand-picked ingredients. Passengers in all classes departing from Taiwan can now pre-order from the classic plant-based gourmet menu.
Yang Ming's latest menu creation is the Clean and Green Plant-based Cuisine, developed in conjunction with China Pacific Catering Services and Kaohsiung Airport Catering Services of the CAL Group. This exclusive menu is the first time that Michelin Green Star Cuisine has made its way into inflight service. The extensive menu is too long to list, but two eye-catchers are the Truffle Risotto and Vegan Fish Fillet with wholegrain mustard and the Sou Wu Nourishing Soup made from 10 precious traditional herbs.
China Airlines is another Asian carrier quickly rebuilding its post-pandemic network, adding routes from Taiwan to Da Nang in Vietnam on January 2nd and Chiang Mai in Thailand on January 20th. CAL is increasing frequencies on other Southeast Asian routes; the Taichung-Ho Chi Minh City route will return to four weekly flights, the Kaohsiung-Manilla to three weekly flights, and the Kaohsiung-Bangkok route will resume in January. This means there will be 18 Southeast Asia routes operating for the Lunar New Year travel season, giving Taiwanese holidaymakers around 130 return flights to choose from.
If you are flying with China Airlines are you ordering the plant-based menu? Let us know in the comments.
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China Airlines
- IATA/ICAO Code:
- CI/CAL
- Airline Type:
- Full Service Carrier
- Hub(s):
- Taoyuan International Airport
- Year Founded:
- 1959
- Alliance:
- SkyTeam
- Airline Group:
- China Airlines Group
- CEO:
- Hsieh Shih-Chen
- Country:
- Republic of China
- Region:
- Asia
