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Mandarin Airlines to grow its ATR fleet to 13 in first half of 2026
January 27th 2026
Mandarin Airlines will introduce two more ATR aircraft from France in February and March this year. Read More » In the first half of 2026, the China Airlines (CAL) Group carrier will have a fleet of 13 ATR72-600 aircraft, completing its current ATR 2.0 fleet introduction plan. The ATR 2.0 fleet is equipped with upgraded engines, boasting advantages such as high efficiency, fuel economy, and low carbon emissions, the airline said. Mandarin Airlines, operating 11 domestic flight routes in Taiwan, departing from Taipei, Taichung, and Kaohsiung, called on the government to allow airlines to raise domestic ticket prices. Taiwan’s Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) sets the ceiling and floor fares of each domestic flight route based on a formula set in 1999, in which it reviewed the oil price and 13 cost items submitted by domestic carriers. In 2014, it granted carriers the freedom to propose adjustments based on changes in oil prices. Bryant Chuang, Mandarin Airlines president, told Taipei Times the company’s operational costs have increased about 20% due to the acquisition of new aircraft, salary increases, and a significant rise in the number of older passengers, who only pay half the ticket price. The percentage of older passengers on domestic flights has risen from about 9% to nearly 14%, as Taiwan officially became a super-aged society last year, Chuang said. “We submitted our request for a ticket price adjustment in November and hope that we are allowed to increase the ticket prices by at least 10%,” Chuang said, adding that even approved price changes would not fully cover its operational costs. Chuang also proposed a variable pricing mechanism for the public, with fares adjusted for the seasons, adding that there would be separate fare schemes applicable to residents of outlying islands to ensure that their travel needs are taken into account. Mandarin Airlines chairman Chen Ta-chun said the airline would like to gain government permission to shut down the Kaohsiung-Hualien route with average operating load factors of 20% and the Taichung-Hualien route with average load factors of 30%. Shutting them down could reduce losses by an estimated NT$30 million to NT$40 million (US$949,067 to US$1.27 million) per month. Mandarin Airlines’ revenue comes from international routes, domestic routes, and ground handling services. The company posted revenue of NT$6.47 billion in 2025, and expects revenue of about NT$6.6 billion in 2026.
