First direct Mainland-Taiwan medical flight_时事politics

"we've waited a long time for this," said keynes chen, general manager with international sos in taiwan. "the feeling is quite exciting. this is a good thing for cross-straits exchange." (photo: xinhua) sept. 15 - a plane evacuating a 71-year-old stroke victim took off for taiwan from china on thursday, the first direct medical flight since 1949.

 

the taiwan citizen's 100-minute evacuation from guangzhou to taipei, stems from a june agreement that also calls for direct passenger and cargo flights.

 

the taiwan authority has banned direct air links with chinese mainland since their split in 1949. but as about a million taiwan people live in china for business or study, taipei and beijing exchanged landmark non-stop charter flights for the first time since then during the lunar new year festival of 2005.

 

a taiwan citizen with a medical emergency in south china would normally take a road ambulance to macau or hong kong, then fly home, adding three or four hours to the total travel time, according to thurday's guangzhou-taipei flight operator, singapore-based international sos.

 

"we've waited a long time for this," said keynes chen, general manager with international sos in taiwan. "the feeling is quite exciting. this is a good thing for cross-straits exchange."

 

on june 15 this year, taiwan agreed to allow direct cargo flights on a case-by-case basis and passenger flights during four major holidays, including the mid-autumn festival next month. taipei and beijing also agreed to allow special emergency medical and humanitarian aid charter flights.