V Air

V Air
威航
Wēi Háng
IATA ICAO Call sign
ZV VAX VANTAGE
Founded20 January 2014 (2014-01-20)
Commenced operations17 December 2014 (2014-12-17)
Ceased operations1 October 2016 (2016-10-01)
HubsTaoyuan International Airport
Parent companyTransAsia Airways (100%)
HeadquartersDatong, Taipei, Taiwan
Key people

V Air was a short-lived Taiwanese low-cost airline based in Taipei active from 2014 through 2016. It was a franchise subsidiary of TransAsia Airways serving flights to Japan, South Korea, Thailand and Cambodia from its base at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport.[1]

History

On 24 March 2014, V Air announced that its corporate identity would be the Formosan black bear. The airline commenced services on 17 December 2014 with its maiden flight from Taipei to Bangkok, Thailand.[2] On 7 January 2015, a second route, to Chiang Mai, Thailand, was launched.[3] On 10 April 2015, V air opened its third scheduled flight route to Macau.[4] The airline also flew from Taipei to Manila, Philippines, but the service was soon discontinued due to strong competition on the Taipei - Manila sector. V Air offered Taiwanese cuisine and beverage for sale on its flights.[5] Its aircraft were in an all-economy seating layout with a seat pitch of 32 inches (81 cm).

Citing harsh competition and a revamped business model, V Air announced in August 2016 that it would cease all operations on 1 October 2016 and be folded back to its parent company TransAsia Airways, which itself declared bankruptcy 1 month later.[6]

Destinations

As of September 2016, V Air served the following scheduled and charter destinations:[7]

City Country Airport Notes
Bangkok Thailand Don Mueang International Airport
Busan South Korea Gimhae International Airport [8]
Chiang Mai Thailand Chiang Mai International Airport
Fukuoka Japan Fukuoka Airport [9]
Manila Philippines Ninoy Aquino International Airport
Omitama Japan Ibaraki Airport [10]
Nagoya Japan Chūbu Centrair International Airport [11]
Naha Japan Naha Airport [12]
Osaka Japan Kansai International Airport [9]
Siem Reap Cambodia Siem Reap International Airport Charter
Taipei Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport Hub
Tokyo Japan Haneda Airport [13]

Fleet

V Air Airbus A321-200

At the time the airline ceased operations, the V Air fleet consisted of the following aircraft:[14]

V Air Fleet
Aircraft In Service Passengers Notes
Airbus A320-200 2 180
Airbus A321-200 2 194
Total 4

References

  1. ^ "'V Air' selected as Transasia's new low-cost airline name". Radio Taiwan International. Archived from the original on 1 February 2014. Retrieved 23 January 2014.
  2. ^ "Taiwan's V Air lifts off with Thai flights". Bangkok Post. Retrieved 28 December 2014.
  3. ^ "Taiwan's V Air Launched". Airliner World: 17. March 2015.
  4. ^ Lee, Hsin-Yin (11 April 2016). "V Air's maiden flight to Macau sees satisfactory ridership". Central News Agency. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  5. ^ "V Air in-flight services". V-air. Retrieved 28 December 2014.
  6. ^ Chen, Ted (10 August 2016). "TransAsia to absorb subsidiary V Air". Taipei Times. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  7. ^ flyvair.com - Route Map retrieved 15 September 2016
  8. ^ "V Air to Start Taipei - Busan Service from late-August 2015". Airlineroute.net. 6 August 2015. Retrieved 6 August 2015.
  9. ^ a b "V Air Plans Osaka / Fukuoka Service from Jan 2016". Airlineroute.net. 13 November 2015. Retrieved 13 November 2015.
  10. ^ Vエアの国際定期便(茨城-台北線)就航について (in Japanese). 2015-01-22.
  11. ^ "V Air to Start Taipei - Nagoya Service from Dec 2015". Airlineroute.net. 12 November 2015. Retrieved 12 November 2015.
  12. ^ "V Air to Start Taipei – Okinawa Service from July 2016". airlineroute. Retrieved 27 April 2016.
  13. ^ "V Air Adds New Tokyo Routes from March 2016". airlineroute. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
  14. ^ "V Air Fleet Details and History". Planespotters.net. 28 September 2016. Retrieved 3 October 2016.

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