No more Canada bound pre check in Taipei

Taiwan Living in Taiwan
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Canadian officers found issues so Airport MRT decided to cancel the service. “It only affects 10 people a day”, they say.

Airport MRT check-in service for Canada-bound travelers suspended

The In-Town Check-In service currently provided to passengers of China Airlines and EVA Air in conjunction with Taipei Main Station Airport MRT line has been suspended for passengers flying to Canada, Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport Co. said on Wednesday.

The suspension was introduced after Canadian civil aviation authorities sent personnel to Taiwan’s Civil Aeronautics Administration to learn more about the advanced check-in procedures being followed, according to the company.

During the review, the Canadian inspectors raised concerns about security measures in place at the do-it-yourself check-in and luggage check-in counter at Taipei station, in the center of Taipei City, the company added.

As a result, a decision was made to suspend the luggage check-in service for passengers bound for Canada, starting at 6 p.m. Wednesday, the company said, noting that the measure would impact fewer than 10 passengers a day.

CNA

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Damn. I wonder what the issues are? Odd that US flights aren’t impacted.

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I must be one of the unlucky “10”. It just snagged me as my flight home was Thursday night.

Although that number seems low. Consider that around 1000 seats a day go direct to Vancouver when combining EVA, China Airlines, and Air Canada. That is the majority, and many may be ‘connecting-seats’, but there are additional seats headed for Toronto and other cities.
Therefore,

  1. I “call BS” on their claim of “10 per day”.

  2. Keeping in-town check-in closed won’t solve anything. It won’t “shore-up” security.

2a) Just x-ray everything at the airport. Or x-ray it downtown then lock it up securely. Or both. If needed, charge extra for the convenience to pay for an x-ray machine for the downtown MRT station. I would have happily paid up to the cost of the train ticket for the convenience. The ticket itself was only about $5.33 USD (160 NT) each way.

2b) I do not want to overstate or overstep. However I think the passenger screening process I experienced late in the evening on 11/23 was not up to standard. I think Canada officials would have been unsettled.

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