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SHANGHAI: Direct weekend flights between Taiwan and mainland China took off for the first time in almost 60 years on Friday.
Under an agreement signed last month, there will be 36 round-trip flights across the Taiwan Strait weekly, operating from Friday to Monday.
The first flight out of Shanghai on Shanghai Airlines consisted mainly of Taiwanese. Many welcomed the historic moment.
"I've waited eight years for this and finally we can fly this route, I am very pleased. But I hope that the two sides can truly fly a direct route," said a Taiwanese housewife.
"It's definitely more convenient and better than before," said a Taiwanese girl.
In addition to the shorter journey, some also saw the deeper significance behind the convenience, in particular, the willingness to shelf sensitive issues and focus on practical policies that will benefit both sides.
A Taiwanese businessman said: "This time, when we land in Songshan airport, my personal feel is that this has some political hints. It means the Taiwanese view this direct flight as a domestic flight instead of an international flight."
The importance of the cross-strait flights to Taiwan was seen in the warm welcome received when the aircraft taxied through a shower of blessing at Taipei's Songshan airport.
Songshan is one of the eight Taiwanese airports which will receive and operate direct weekend flights to five Chinese cities for now.
Going by the warm reception and the enthusiastic response from the mainland tourists, there is great potential for the cross-strait connections to grow.
A tourist from Shanghai said: "This is my first time, and I feel happy and I want to see everything."
Another tourist from Shanghai said: "I hope to do some sightseeing. I want to see Taiwan's landscape and beautiful scenery and soak in the culture."
More than 700 Chinese nationals were to arrive in Taiwan on Friday from Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and two other cities.
Meanwhile, China and Taiwan are already planning to expand the flights to daily operations, and to shorten the journey even further.
This is because even though the weekend flights are direct ones, they do not fly a direct route. All carriers will still have to fly via Hong Kong. - CNA/ir
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