China Airlines

China Airlines, Limited is the flag carrier of the Republic of China on Taiwan. The airline is not directly state owned. However, it is owned by the China Aviation Development Foundation which in turn is owned by the government of the Republic of China. Unlike other state-owned companies in the Republic of China, the chairman of China Airlines does not report to the Legislative Yuan.
The airline, based at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport and with headquarters in Taipei, currently flies to destinations in Asia, Europe, North America and Oceania. Due to current politically-motivated prohibitions on the Three Links, the airline do not operate regularly scheduled flights between Taiwan and mainland China. All flights serving this market are thus concentrated at Hong Kong, where it has operated since 1967. It is the airline's most profitable market, generating 13.3% of its NT$121.9 billion (US$ 3.7 billion) revenue in 2006 with over 140 flights flown a week between Taipei, Kaohsiung and Hong Kong.
The airline's main domestic competitor is EVA Air. China Airlines is expected to become a full member of SkyTeam in late 2008. Talks between the airline and the alliance started in Fall 2007.

History

Transport, founded by General Claire L. Chennault and Whiting Willauer in 1946. The other two were joint ventures by the ROC government with Pan American World Airways, and Lufthansa. As a result of the Chinese Civil War, the Communist Party of China took control of mainland China, and only Civil Air Transport moved along with the Kuomintang-controlled ROC government to Taiwan.
With a fleet of 2 PBY Amphibians, China Airlines was established on December 16, 1959 with its shares completely held by the ROC government. It was founded by a retired air force officer and initially concentrated on charter flights. During the 1960s, China Airlines was able to establish its first domestic and international routes, and in October 1962, a flight from Taipei to Hualien became the airline's first domestic service. Growth continued and on December 1, 1966, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam (then Saigon, South Vietnam), became the airline's first international destination. Trans-Pacific flights to San Francisco were initiated on 2 February 1970.
The next 20 years saw sporadic but far-reaching growth for the company. Routes were opened to Los Angeles, New York, London and Paris, among others (China Airline's first European destination was Amsterdam). Jets were acquired, and China Airlines employed such planes as the Boeing 747 in their fleet. Later, the airline inaugurated its own round-the-world flight : (Taipei-Anchorage-New York - Amsterdam-Dubai-Taipei). 1993 saw China Airlines listed on the Taiwan Stock Exchange.
As the flag carrier for the Republic of China, China Airlines has been affected by disputes over the political status of Taiwan, and under pressure from the People's Republic of China was barred from flying into a number of countries maintaining diplomatic relations with the PRC. As a result, in the mid-1990s, China Airlines subsidiary Mandarin Airlines took over some of its international routes e.g. Sydney and Vancouver. Partly as a way to avoid the international controversy, China Airlines unveiled its "plum blossom flower" logo, replacing the national flag which had previously appeared on the tail-fins, and the red-white-blue national colors on the fuselage of its aircraft, from October 7, 1995.
Throughout the 1990s, the airline had the practice of employing many ex-ROC Air Force pilots. Due to the company's poor safety record in the 1990s, China Airlines began to change its pilot recruitment practices. The company also began to actively recruit civilian-trained pilots with proven track records. In addition, the company began recruiting new university graduates as trainees in its own pilot training program. The company also modified its maintenance and operational procedures. These decisions were instrumental in the company's improved safety record, culminating in the company's recognition by the IATA.
Taiwan's political status proved to be a blessing in disguise for China Airlines in Japan. As Japan does not recognize Taiwan's independence, it did not allow China Airlines to use Narita International Airport. Instead China Airlines used Tokyo's domestic Haneda Airport (which is much closer to Tokyo city), until April 18, 2002 , when flights were transferred to Narita.
In recent years, some pro-Taiwan independence activists have sought to rename the airline "Taiwan Airlines", arguing that foreigners have in the past confused the airline with Air China and that "China" is not a representative name for an airline that has no scheduled flights to mainland China. In late 2004, President Chen Shui-bian proposed the renaming of all state-owned enterprises bearing the name "China" to "Taiwan." Many consider his act as one of desinicization. This was opposed by the Pan-blue coalition, the opposition parties in the Taiwan legislature. The airline also voiced concern over its international operations, codeshare agreements and other commercial contracts. The issue was dropped after the 2004 Legislative Yuan election when the pro-Chen Pan-Green Coalition failed to win a majority. In 2007, however, the issue resurfaced with the renaming of several state-owned companies such as Taiwan Post and CPC Corporation, Taiwan.
China Airlines has been reported to be in talks with the SkyTeam airline alliance regarding full membership. While neither the airline nor SkyTeam have made any official announcements, it is expected that China Airlines will join the alliance sometime in 2008. China Airlines would be the alliance's twelfth full member airline.

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