It seems that China Airlines are plotting their return to London, with bookings opening for its new direct service between Taipei Taoyuan and London Gatwick.
China Airlines Airbus A350 – Image, Airbus
China Airlines are planning to return to London, but will use Gatwick instead of Heathrow as its gateway to the city.
The route will operate four times a week, based on the following timetable:
CI069 DEPART TPE 08:55 ARRIVE LGW 14:55 Fridays Only CI069 DEPART TPE 09:30 ARRIVE LGW 15:30 Mondays Wednesday and Saturdays CI070 DEPART LGW 21:15 ARRIVE TPE 18:30+1 Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays Commences 1st December 2017 Operates Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays Booked Equipment: Airbus A350-900.
Connections with Australian services will be possible with Taipei-Sydney going double daily, and Taipei-Brisbane-Auckland going daily.
China Airlines will deploy a three-class Airbus A350-900 on the route, made up of:
- 32 Business Class Seats
- 31 Premium Economy Class Seats
- 243 Economy Class seats
This marks the return of China Airlines to London, who previously operated to Heathrow for two years. It’s an interesting choice for the airline to choose Gatwick over Heathrow (and thus co-habit with its Skyteam colleagues).
There could be a variety of reasons – be it the slots were overpriced, none of the slots they want would work, or that Gatwick offered a decent subsidy to operate from there.
None the less, the Taipei to Heathrow route is a lightly contested one, with EVA Air who operate daily services (although these have a one-stop at Bangkok in both directions).
With four days a week, it’s a good way to see if China Airlines can make the London route again.
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One thing the non-stops between Europe and Taiwan have to contend with is the ban on travelling over China airspace.
The flight paths that result are slightly ludicrous, resulting in a flight that is 1-2 hours longer than a straight-line. If only CI had some sort of Hello Kitty or other themed offering, then that would have been fun!