F-4 bubble check on Makung Air Base, Taiwan

Penghu Airport , formerly Magong Airport (), is a domestic airport in Huxi,

Penghu County The Penghu (, Hokkien POJ: ''Phîⁿ-ô͘'' or ''Phêⁿ-ô͘'' ) or Pescadores Islands are an archipelago of 90 islands and islets in the Taiwan Strait, located approximately west from the main island of Taiwan, covering an area ...

, Taiwan. With 2,380,265 passengers in 2017, it is the fifth-busiest airport in Taiwan, The

ROC Air Force The Republic of China Air Force, retroactively known by its historical name the Chinese Air Force and unofficially referred to as the Taiwanese Air Force, is the military aviation branch of the Republic of China Armed Forces, currently based i ...

also has Magong Air Base here.

History

Penghu Airport opened in 1957 with a focus on military personnel and cargo transportation. The construction of the new terminal began in 1966 and was subordinate to

Kaohsiung Airport Kaohsiung International Airport () is a medium-sized civil airport in Siaogang District, Kaohsiung, Taiwan, also known as Siaogang Airport (). With nearly seven million passengers in 2018, it is the second busiest airport in Taiwan, after Tao ...

. The airport was officially established as a Type C airport and began operations on 1 August 1977. In August 2004, the second phase of a new terminal was completed, which included the waiting room and terminal building. In June 2015, a new

instrument landing system In aviation, the instrument landing system (ILS) is a precision radio navigation system that provides short-range guidance to aircraft to allow them to approach a runway at night or in bad weather. In its original form, it allows an aircraft to ...

at the airport was inaugurated which was expected to improve safety, reducing the visibility requirement for the runway from 1,600 to 1,200

metre The metre (British spelling) or meter (American spelling; see spelling differences) (from the French unit , from the Greek noun , "measure"), symbol m, is the primary unit of length in the International System of Units (SI), though its pref ...

s. On 30 July 2018, the Civil Aeronautics Administration announced that Magong Airport would be renamed to Penghu Airport on 9 August 2018. On 22 September 2020, President

Tsai Ing-wen Tsai Ing-wen (; born 31 August 1956) is a Taiwanese politician serving as president of the Republic of China (Taiwan) since 2016. A member of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), Tsai is the first female president of Taiwan. She served as ...

visited Penghu Magong Air Force base and praised the "heroic performance" of the pilots and crews who had intercepted and driven away Chinese (PRC) aircraft over the weekend.

Airlines and destinations

Accidents

* On 5 June 1972, C-130E 62-1805, c/n 3759, of the 37th Tactical Airlift Squadron, loaned to the 374th Tactical Airlift Wing,

USAF The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Sign ...

– crashed in sea near Makung, Pescadores Islands, after suffering landing gear explosion while in traffic pattern. Pilot retracted landing gear while brake assembly was overheated. Denied sufficient cooling air after retraction into well, the port aft wheel assembly exploded damaging wheel well bulkhead, rupturing several hydraulic lines, the fluid from which was then ignited by the hot components resulting in loss of control of the aircraft. *On 16 February 1986, China Airlines Flight 2265 Crashed during a

go-around In aviation, a go-around is an aborted landing of an aircraft that is on final approach or has already touched down. A go-around can either be initiated by the pilot flying or requested by air traffic control for various reasons, such as an unstab ...

killing all 13 on board, the aircraft was also involved in

China Airlines Flight 831 China Airlines Flight 831 was a scheduled passenger flight from Kaohsiung in Taiwan to British Hong Kong that was hijacked on March 9, 1978. Hijacking The flight, operated by a Boeing 737, Boeing 737-281 registered as B-1870, departed at 16:08 ...

which was hijacked on 9 March 1978. * On 23 July 2014,

TransAsia Airways Flight 222 TransAsia Airways Flight 222 was a scheduled domestic passenger flight operated by TransAsia Airways from Kaohsiung, Taiwan, to Magong, Penghu Island. On 23 July 2014, the ATR 72-500 twin turboprop operating the route crashed into buildings dur ...

crashed during a second attempt landing during bad weather. The flight originated from

Kaohsiung International Airport Kaohsiung International Airport () is a medium-sized civil airport in Siaogang District, Kaohsiung, Taiwan, also known as Siaogang Airport (). With nearly seven million passengers in 2018, it is the second busiest airport in Taiwan, after T ...

. The

ATR 72-500 The ATR 72 is a twin-engine turboprop, short-haul regional airliner developed and produced in France and Italy by aircraft manufacturer ATR (french: Avions de transport régional or it, Aerei da Trasporto Regionale), a joint venture formed ...

was carrying 58 passengers. 11 survived the initial crash, but one succumbed to their injuries during the following days. On the ground, 5 were injured and two homes caught fire due to the crash.

References

External links

Penghu Airport
{{authority control 1977 establishments in Taiwan Airports established in 1977 Airports in Penghu County

History

Airlines and destinations

Accidents

See also

References

External links