Taipei:Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an recently proposed closing Songshan Airport to develop an "AI park" in its place, sparking renewed debate about the future of this historic airport.

According to Focus Taiwan, Songshan Airport has a storied history, having opened during Japanese rule in 1936 as Taihoku Airfield, and later becoming Taipei International Airport in 1950 following the relocation of the Kuomintang government to Taiwan.

Initially, Songshan Airport expanded to accommodate international flights from 14 airlines. However, the opening of Chiang Kai-shek International Airport (now Taoyuan International Airport) in 1979 shifted international flights away from Songshan, prompting the airport to focus on domestic routes. This shift led to a decline in passenger volume.

Songshan's fortunes improved in 1987 with the government's "open skies" policy, as deregulation spurred domestic airline expansion. By 1997, the airport's passenger volume peaked at 15.39 million annually.

The 2000s saw domestic air travel decline due to airline consolidation, highway expansion, and the introduction of Taiwan High Speed Rail, which caused Songshan's passenger volume to drop significantly by 2008.

A new opportunity arose in 2008 with the introduction of weekend charter flights between Taiwan and China, followed by direct flights to Shanghai's Hongqiao Airport and Tokyo Haneda Airport in 2010. Recently, Songshan has been increasingly used by Taiwanese carriers for short-haul flights to Japan and South Korea.