Mandarin Airlines facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Mandarin Airlines
華信航空

Founded	1 June 1991; 34 years ago (1991-06-01)
Commenced operations	16 October 1991; 33 years ago (1991-10-16)
Hubs	Taichung Taipei–Songshan
Focus cities	Kaohsiung
Frequent-flyer program	Dynasty Flyer
Alliance	SkyTeam (affiliate)
Fleet size	10
Destinations	34
Parent company	China Airlines
Headquarters	Songshan District, Taipei, Taiwan
Key people	Samuel P. Lin (Chairman)

Mandarin Airlines (traditional Chinese: 華信航空; simplified Chinese: 华信航空; pinyin: Huáxìn Hángkōng) is a Taiwanese airline. It is based in Taipei, Taiwan. Its main company is China Airlines. Mandarin Airlines flies to places within Taiwan and to nearby countries. Its parent company, China Airlines, mostly handles longer international flights. Mandarin Airlines also offers some special charter flights. Its main airports are Songshan Airport, Taichung International Airport, and Kaohsiung International Airport.

History of Mandarin Airlines

A Boeing 747SP airplane landing in Hong Kong in 1996. This was one of the first planes Mandarin Airlines used.

Mandarin Airlines started on June 1, 1991. It was first a partnership between China Airlines (which owned 67%) and Koos Group (which owned 33%). The name "Mandarin" comes from combining parts of their Chinese names.

The airline was created because of Taiwan's unique political situation. At that time, China Airlines was Taiwan's main airline. Its planes had the flag of the Republic of China (Taiwan) painted on them. The People's Republic of China (mainland China) did not recognize Taiwan's government. So, they tried to stop China Airlines from flying to many international places.

However, mainland China did not object to other Taiwanese airlines that did not show the Republic of China flag. To get around these problems, Mandarin Airlines was started. This allowed more flights to international destinations without political issues.

On October 16, 1991, Mandarin Airlines began flying. Its first direct flight was from Taipei to Sydney, Australia. On December 7, 1991, it started direct flights to Vancouver, Canada. This made Mandarin Airlines the first Taiwanese airline to fly directly to Australia and Canada.

On October 31, 1992, China Trust Group stopped investing in Mandarin Airlines. By December 1992, China Airlines owned almost all of Mandarin Airlines (90.05%). Mandarin Airlines then changed its focus. It became an airline mainly for domestic flights and short flights within Asia. This happened because China Airlines changed its plane designs. The new designs did not include the national flag. This meant China Airlines faced fewer objections from mainland China for its international routes.

On August 8, 1999, China Airlines combined Mandarin Airlines with another airline called Formosa Airlines. Mandarin Airlines took over Formosa's flights within Taiwan and its planes. Most of Mandarin Airlines' international flights and larger planes were moved to China Airlines. In early 2000, Mandarin Airlines bought five Dornier 228 planes from Uni Air. These planes were used for flights to smaller, less busy routes. In 2005, these planes were sold to Daily Air.

As of March 2007, China Airlines owns 93.99% of Mandarin Airlines. The airline has 630 employees.

About the Company

The China Airlines Minquan Building, where Mandarin Airlines has its main office.

Headquarters

Mandarin Airlines' main office is in Songshan District, Taipei. Before this, its headquarters was in a different building in Taipei.

Company Logo

The airline's logo features a Hai Tung Ching (traditional Chinese: 海東青; simplified Chinese: 海东青; pinyin: Hǎidōngqīng). This is a type of gyrfalcon from an old Chinese legend.

Where Mandarin Airlines Flies

As of February 2024, Mandarin Airlines flies to these places:

Codeshare Agreements

Mandarin Airlines has special agreements with other airlines. These are called codeshare agreements. It means they can sell tickets on each other's flights. As of November 2012, Mandarin Airlines has agreements with:

• China Eastern Airlines
• China Southern Airlines
• Shanghai Airlines
• XiamenAir

Mandarin Airlines Fleet

Current Airplanes

A Mandarin Airlines ATR 72-600 airplane.

As of February 2024, Mandarin Airlines uses these airplanes:

New Planes Over Time

In December 2005, Mandarin Airlines announced it would lease eight Embraer 190 planes. These new planes would replace older Fokker 50 and Fokker 100 aircraft. The first Embraer 190 arrived in May 2007. Mandarin Airlines was the first airline in Taiwan to use this type of plane. On October 27, 2009, Mandarin Airlines stopped using its last Fokker 100 plane. This ended 14 years of service for that type of aircraft. On July 19, 2017, Mandarin Airlines ordered six ATR 72-600 planes. These were delivered starting in 2018.

Old Airplanes

A former Mandarin Airlines Boeing 747SP in 1996.

A former Mandarin Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-11 in 1998.

Mandarin Airlines used to operate these airplanes:

Flight Incidents

• On August 22, 1999, China Airlines Flight 642 crashed while landing at Hong Kong International Airport. Three people died in this accident. The flight was operated by a Mandarin Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-11 plane.
• On December 6, 2006, Mandarin Airlines Flight 1261 flew from Taipei to Kinmen. After landing at Jinmen Airport, it was discovered that a wheel from the front landing gear had fallen off. The wheel was later found near the runway at Songshan Airport. No one was hurt in this incident.
• On August 17, 2012, Mandarin Airlines Flight 369 went off the runway during heavy rain. This happened because of how the plane landed and slowed down at Magong airport. The E-190 plane was purposely steered off the side of the runway. It hit the base of four concrete runway lights, which caused the nose landing gear to break. No injuries were reported from this event.

See also

In Spanish: Mandarin Airlines para niños

• List of airlines of Taiwan
• Air transport in Taiwan
• List of airports in Taiwan
• List of companies of Taiwan
• Transportation in Taiwan
• China Airlines