On June 6, President of the Republic of China (Taiwan) Tsai Ing-wen posted a picture on Facebook to pay tribute to the military under the caption “Salute to the National Armed Forces.” In the post, she mentioned that starting from July, military personnel will have priority boarding on national airlines, and the government will gradually roll out more policies to show respect to the military and rally support for them, making them the strongest backbone of the country.
To express gratitude to the Republic of China’s military for their long-standing commitment to safeguarding national security, Taiwan’s national airlines, such as China Airlines, will simultaneously introduce “Military Priority Boarding Service” on international flights. Minister of Transportation Chen Shih-kai and Minister of Defense Chiu Kuo-cheng jointly attended a press conference on June 6 to express gratitude to the military and the airlines and announced that this service would come into effect in July.
President Tsai Ing-wen reiterated on June 6 the salute to the military, stating that military personnel would have priority boarding on national airlines starting in July. The military stands ready in every corner of the country around the clock, protecting the homeland and working tirelessly, deserving the respect and support of all citizens.
Tsai mentioned, “Since taking office, I instructed Minister Chiu Kuo-cheng to collaborate with various ministries to comprehensively deliberate on support measures for the military as a way to express the government’s support and gratitude.” The Ministry of Transportation and the Ministry of Defense jointly announced that, starting on July 1 this year, active-duty military personnel traveling on international flights of national airlines would be entitled to “priority boarding” privileges.
Tsai emphasized that while such policies may seem ordinary, they are a recognition of the military’s service, not only enhancing the sense of honor and status of servicemen and women, but also serving as a concrete demonstration of the government’s appreciation for the military’s dedication to the country.
She further stated that the government would continue to provide various forms of support to the military, and in the future, more policies to show respect for the military would be introduced one after another, calling on everyone to rally behind the military as the firmest pillar of support.
The Civil Aviation Bureau of Taiwan’s Ministry of Transportation stated, “Starting from July 1, when national airlines conduct boarding procedures for flights, military personnel will be invited to board first through boarding announcements. Active-duty military personnel can show their military identification for identification purposes and enjoy priority boarding privileges when boarding international flights of six national airlines, including China Airlines, Eva Air, StarLux Airlines, Tigerair Taiwan, UNI Air, and Mandarin Airlines.”