TransAsia Airways (Taipei Sung Shan) will ground two of its four A330-300 widebody aircraft while reducing frequencies on key mainland Chinese and Japanese routes as part of cost-cutting measures. The airline has been severely affected by punitive measures imposed on it in the wake of two ATR72 crashes in 2014 and 2015. Among the measures are a moratorium on the opening of new routes for one-year after each accident.
As such, Focus Taiwan magazine reports that while TransAsia intends to ground B-22103 (cn 1146) and B-22105 (cn 1157), both of which are leased from Lease Corporation International (LCI), it has not discounted sub-leasing the aircraft out to other interested operators.
The two remaining A330s, which it owns, will be used on routes to Shanghai Pudong and Japanese destinations, including Osaka Kansai, Hakodate, Sapporo Chitose and Asahikawa. However, the combined frequency to Hakodate, Sapporo and Asahikawa will be cut from two daily return flights to one between June 15 and late October. Flights between Taipei Taoyuan and Tokyo Narita will be operated by smaller A320/321 jets from June 15, and the frequency will be halved to one daily round trip from July.
The Taiwanese operator recently confirmed that it has now reverted a former firm order with Airbus (AIB, Toulouse Blagnac) for six A321neo, back into options.
In all, TransAsia Airways continues to operate five A320-200s, four A321-200s, two A330-300s and nine ATR72-500/600s.
