Palau Asia Pacific Air (Koror) has commenced flight operations using an A320-200 chartered from Cambodia's Sky Angkor Airlines (ZA, Phnom Penh).

Since the beginning of the month, the Palau-based virtual carrier has been using XU-718 (msn 1595) to run flights from Hong Kong International and Macau International to Koror.

An airline representative told The Island Times that the restoration of direct flights from Hong Kong and Macau to Palau would help offset the passenger traffic lost as a result of China's downgrading of the island state in 2018.

The diplomatic spat, brought on by Palau's refusal to switch diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China, played a significant role in the collapse of Palau Pacific Airways (Koror).