EVA Air ends twice-weekly direct Taipei-Guam flights

Leading Taiwanese carrier EVA Air has stopped its flights services between Taipei and Guam. The direct flights on the route were being operated twice weekly, and ended on June 7, 2017. The airline has however declined to say why it had to stop its services. EVA Air had first launched its flights to Guam in 2011.

With EVA Air deciding to pull out of the route, China Airlines will now be the only Taiwanese carrier to continue serving Guam from Taipei with its direct flights services. Taiwan’s flagship carrier China Airlines is presently operating direct flights between the two destinations twice weekly. The Guam-Taipei route is being alternately served with the help of a 150-seat Boeing 737 aircraft and a 277-seat Airbus A330 aircraft.

Media reports said that EVA Air had earlier served a formal notice to the A.B. Won Pat Guam International Airport Authority on April 25 this year itself that it would stop serving the route from June 7 onwards. According to the report, EVA Air had also informed Guam airport officials that it would downsize the aircraft on Guam-Taipei route by replacing the bigger 252-seat Airbus A330 aircraft with the smaller 184-seat Airbus A321 aircraft.

Travel experts said that the dismal tourist arrivals might have prompted EVA Air to take the decision to end services on the route. The visitor arrivals from Taiwan to Guam were flat in 2016, at 42,229. The increase was quite negligible at 0.1 percent. The over5all tourist arrivals to Guam however showed a growth of 9 percent last year when compared to 2015. This was mainly because of a 27 percent growth from its second-largest visitors market South Korea, even though a decline of 3.5 percent was witnessed from Guam’s largest market Japan. EVA Air currently owns a fleet of above 67 aircrafts and serves 65 destinations spanning over four continents, excluding Africa. The airline offers flights services to nearly 10 destinations in the United States.