《TAIPEI TIMES 焦點》 CAA urges TransAsia to submit plan

By Shelley Shan / Staff reporter

The Civil Aeronautics Administration （CAA） yesterday asked TransAsia Airways （復興航空） to submit a plan to manage the 27 aircraft registered to the airline, which are to be grounded until the plan is approved.

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Agency data showed that the company owns 11 aircraft and leases 16.

TransAsia, which is attempting to liquidate its assets to generate funds to cover various expenses, must gain approval for its plan to dispose of its fleet before any sales, the agency said, adding that no airports would allow flights of the airline’s planes.

TransAsia’s fleet is comprised of Airbus A320, A321 and A330 aircraft, as well as ATRs, the agency said, adding that the airline had taken delivery of a new Airbus A330 on Saturday.

Meanwhile, EVA Air （長榮航空） and China Airlines （中華航空） have agreed to hire some of TransAsia’s pilots, who are to be laid off after it dissolved its business on Tuesday, the agency said.

TransAsia employed about 170 pilots, including those still in training, 90 of whom are trained to operate A320 and A321 aircraft, the agency said.

EVA was the first airline to express interest in hiring TransAsia pilots, as it also operates the A321 and ATR, the agency said, adding that EVA Air is facing a pilot shortage.

However, neither EVA Air nor China Airlines would say how many TransAsia pilots they would hire, as the pilots would have to pass a number of tests and certifications before being accepted, it added.

The Taoyuan Union of Pilots said that it would assist the TransAsia pilots in finding employment opportunities, urging other local airlines to hire some of them so that they can remain in Taiwan.

“It is not easy to train pilots. Airlines worldwide are short of workers, resulting in employees working overtime and being unable to take holidays as they normally would,” the union said.

“We hope that Taiwanese airlines can move quickly to hire these pilots, so that they can continue working in Taiwan,” it added. “Otherwise, some of the high-quality pilots would be recruited by foreign airlines, which would force the nation’s airlines to look overseas for qualified workers.”

新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES