Summary
- China cancels M503 route deviations, sparking strong reaction from Taiwan, citing safety concerns.
- The M503 route was created to alleviate congestion, sparking protests from Taiwan authorities in 2007, 2015, 2018, and 2024.
- Mainland China’s response to the Taiwan protests has become increasingly limited, from making major concessions to canceling previous compromises.
On January 30th this year, a week before the traditional Chinese New Year holiday, the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) issued a very brief notice on its official website:
“Starting from February 1st, the flight deviation measures for the north-to-south operation of the M503 route will be canceled. Subsequently, the CAAC will also activate the W122 and W123 connecting routes for the M503 route to operate from west to east to improve airspace operation efficiency.”
The CAAC announcement has sparked a strong reaction from the Taiwan authorities. Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council criticized the mainland for activating routes without communication. They stated that it not only disregarded aviation safety and showed disrespect for Taiwan but also deliberately used civil aviation as a cover for inappropriate political and military intentions towards Taiwan, seeking to alter the status quo in the Taiwan Strait.
Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council demanded that mainland China “immediately cease irresponsible flight operations,” warning that if mainland China persisted in its unilateral actions, it “must bear any serious consequences affecting cross-strait relations.”
So, what sets the M503 route apart from other routes? Why would the cancellation of a route deviation provoke such a strong reaction from the Taiwan authorities? And why is there a route deviation in the first place?
What is the M503 route and why is it special?
The M503 route was established by the CAAC to alleviate congestion on the parallel A470 route along the southeastern coast of mainland China, serving as an international civil aviation route. As early as 2007, due to the saturation of traffic on the A470 route, the CAAC planned to establish a new civil aviation route to the west of the median line of the Taiwan Strait.
Subsequently, the CAAC completed the design and assessment of the route, which was approved by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), and assigned the route code M503. China planned to activate the route in January 2008. Alongside M503, three associated parallel routes on the mainland were designated as W121, W122, and W123.
Red Line: A470, Green Line: M503, Blue Line: W121, W122, W123. Illustrated by: Su Wu / Simple Flying
However, the Taiwan authorities fiercely opposed this route. They argued that the M503 route, being only 4.2 nautical miles (approximately 7.8 kilometers) from the Taiwan Strait’s median line, would endanger Taiwan Island’s air defense security and the aviation safety of routes between Taiwan Island and Kinmen and Matsu.
In 2007, the then-governing Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government lobbied the U.S. government through diplomatic channels to demonstrate its tough stance towards mainland China, which led to mainland China postponing the activation of the M503 route.
M503 was finally activated in 2015
However, as China’s economy continued to grow, the number of flights also increased, leading to worsening congestion on the A470 route. At its peak, over 1,200 flights passed through the A470 route daily, with 66% of them being international flights. The average on-time rate was less than 50%.
Traffic volume on routes M503 and A470 at 11:45 UTC, Apr 13, 2024. Photo: FR24
In April 2014, the International Federation of Air Line Pilots’ Association (IFALPA) wrote to Li Jiaxiang, CAAC administrator at the time, expressing concerns about the flaws and problems with the A470 route. IFALPA decided to classify the A470 route as a…
This article was originally published by a simpleflying.com . Read the Original article here. .