Enhanced airlink between Taipei and Shanghai

Various airlines including China Airlines, EVA Airways and TransAsia Airways will operate the route from Taipei, while China Eastern Airlines will fly from Shanghai.

EVA Airways Hong Kong general manager Clark Yeh said the 80-minute journey will further intensify traffic between the two destinations. "Owing to the Shanghai World Expo, all direct flights from Taiwan to Shanghai are full, so are transit flights via Hong Kong. The new services will help to meet demand. The new connections will also facilitate smoother traffic in the long term and enable same-day return."

The Songshan-Hongqiao services will shave at least two hours off travel time.

China Airlines general manager for Hong Kong, Johnson Sun, welcomes the move. He said: "We'll start with six flights per week but the frequency will be boosted to nine by October."

(Sources: Prudence Lui, TTGAsia)