Uni Air
Regional airline of Taiwan
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
UNI Airways (Chinese: 立榮航空; pinyin: Lìróng Hángkōng; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Lïp-êng Háng-khong) is a Taiwanese regional airline based in Zhongshan, Taipei, Taiwan.[2][3] With an operation focus on domestic routes, UNI Air is a subsidiary of Evergreen Group, making it a sister airline of the mainline operator EVA Air. It was known as Makung International Airlines (馬公航空) until 1996, when EVA Air took a majority share of the airline. In 1998, the airline merged with Great China Airlines (大華航空) and Taiwan Airways (臺灣航空), which EVA Air also had interests in, to form UNI Airways (UNI Air).
| |||||||
 A UNI Air ATR 72-600 at Taipei Songshan Airport | |||||||
| |||||||
| Founded | 1988 (as Makung International Airlines) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Commenced operations | March 12, 1996 (as UNI Air) | ||||||
| Hubs | Taipei–Songshan | ||||||
| Focus cities | |||||||
| Frequent-flyer program | Infinity MileageLands | ||||||
| Fleet size | 14 | ||||||
| Destinations | 27 | ||||||
| Parent company | Evergreen Group | ||||||
| Headquarters | Zhongshan, Taipei, Taiwan | ||||||
| Key people | |||||||
| Website | www | ||||||
| Uni Air | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Traditional Chinese | 立榮航空 | ||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 立荣航空 | ||||||||||
| |||||||||||
| Former name | |||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 馬公航空 | ||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 马公航空 | ||||||||||
| Literal meaning | Magong International Airlines | ||||||||||
| |||||||||||
Overview
UNI Air has operated two-class services, with domestic business- and economy-class seating. Business-class passengers have access to EVA Air's Evergreen Lounges. UNI Air's predecessor, Makung International Airlines, operated a fleet of BAe 146 series jet aircraft. These aircraft were sold when UNI Air was formed. UNI Air's IATA Code is B7, its ICAO code is UIA, and its callsign is Glory, in reference to its sister company Uniglory Shipping Corporation.[4] In 2012, UNI Air unveiled a new livery and tail/logo on the MD-90, the Q300 and its new ATR 72-600 aircraft.[citation needed]
The airline has had the largest market share in the domestic Taiwan market in recent years, and has expanded to include international flights. A few of its former McDonnell Douglas MD-90 and current ATR 72 aircraft were repainted and flew for parent carrier EVA Air due to overcapacity. In recent years, UNI Air has launched services to international destinations from the southern Taiwanese port city of Kaohsiung. In 2007, the airline received permission to begin flights to Japan.[5]
Destinations
The airline operates mainly to domestic and China destinations and scheduled international flights to Bangkok, Ho Chi Minh City and Seoul. Also chartered flights to Surabaya and Jeju from Kaohsiung. UNI Air's destinations are:[6]
Codeshare agreements
UNI Air has codeshare agreements with the following airlines:[16]
Interline agreements
UNI Air has interline agreements with the following airlines:
- Taiwan High Speed Rail (railway)[19]
Fleet
Current fleet
As of August 2025[update], Uni Air operates the following aircraft:[20]
| Aircraft | In Service | Orders | Passengers | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| J | Y | Total | ||||
| ATR 72-600 | 14 | 19 | — | 70 | 70 | Order with 3 purchase rights. Deliveries from 2027.[21] |
| Total | 14 | 19 | ||||
Former fleet
UNI Air (including its predecessors Great China Airlines and Makung International Airlines) has previously operated the following aircraft types:[22]
| Aircraft | Total | Introduced | Retired | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Airbus A321-200 | 2 | 2015 | 2022 | |
| Boeing 757-200 | 1 | 1995 | 1996 | |
| BAe 146-300 | 5 | 1990 | 1999 | |
| De Havilland Canada Dash 8-100 | 4 | 1988 | 1996 | |
| De Havilland Canada Dash 8-200 | 1 | 1991 | 2009 | |
| De Havilland Canada Dash 8-300 | 2 | 1991 | 1997 | Sold to Eastern Australia Airlines and De Havilland Canada. |
| 12 | 1993 | 2014 | ||
| 1 | 2001 | 2014 | Sold to Hawker Pacific. | |
| McDonnell Douglas MD-90-30 | 14 | 1996 | 2016 | One burned as Flight 873 |
Accidents and incidents
- On 24 August 1999, Flight 873, a McDonnell Douglas MD-90, landed at Hualien Airport and was rolling on Runway 21 when an explosion was heard in the front section of the passenger cabin, followed by smoke and fire. The pilot brought the aircraft to a stop on the runway and fire squads rushed to the scene to extinguish the fire. While the upper part of the fuselage was completely destroyed, 90 passengers plus the crew of 6 were safely evacuated. 14 passengers were seriously injured, and another 14 suffered minor injuries. Most of the injured passengers suffered burns. There was eventually one death due to fragments produced by the explosion striking 1 passenger.[23]
- On 10 May 2021, Flight 9091, an ATR 72-600, clipped its main landing gear and tail skid on the perimeter wall at Nangan Airport after the pilots initiated a late go-around due to fog during a non-precision approach. The pilots returned to Songshan Airport, where they landed without injury, although the aircraft and runway were damaged. The cause was determined to be the pilot's loss of situational awareness during approach and not following procedure to immediately go around after losing sight of the runway.[24]
