China Airlines (CAL) on Monday flew its maiden flight on a new direct route from Taipei to Da Nang in central Vietnam, and will fly four weekly flights to the city.

In a Monday press release, the Taiwanese carrier said the route will be serviced by its recently delivered fleet of 180-seater A321neos and will make the 3-hour flight between Taoyuan International Airport and Da Nang International Airport every Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.

Da Nang is CAL's third direct flight destination in Vietnam, alongside the already established Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City routes to which CAL currently has daily flights.

Da Nang, the fourth-largest city in Vietnam, marks the halfway point between Hanoi in the north and Ho Chi Minh City in the south, and is a convenient hub to explore attractions in central Vietnam, including the ancient town of Hoi An, the imperial city of Hue, and the Ba Na Hills, CAL said.

Passengers on the maiden flight were given commemorative souvenirs in flight and on arrival at Da Nang International Airport, CAL said.

CAL hopes to boost its presence in Vietnam and the Southeast Asia market with the new route, it said.

The airline is also seeking to attract more transit travelers flying between Vietnam and the United States, given that the carrier provides nearly 30 weekly flights between Taoyuan and North America.

On top of the Jan. 2 flight to Da Nang, CAL established a direct flight from Taipei to Cebu in the Philippines in December last year, and a direct flight to Chiang Mai, Thailand is scheduled to launch on Jan. 20.

CAL also announced it is gradually resuming flights in the region to its pre-pandemic level, and that for the first high season of the year -- the Lunar New Year holiday from Jan. 20-29 -- it will operate four flights a week between Taichung and Ho Chi Minh City.

There will also be six flights a week between Kaohsiung and Bangkok and four flights a week between Kaohsiung and Manila, the carrier said, adding that it will operate more than 130 flights a week on 18 routes in Southeast Asia during the holiday.

Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel