Departure
95%
vs 95%
MY FS FLIGHTS
MY FS FLIGHTS
Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, sited at Dayuan on the northwest coast some 40 km from central Taipei, is the country's largest and busiest airport and the principal international hub for China Airlines, EVA Air and Starlux Airlines. For the simulator pilot it offers a major Asian gateway with two long parallel runways, full ILS coverage and a busy multi-frequency approach and tower environment.
Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport (ICAO: RCTP, IATA: TPE) is the main international gateway for Taipei and northern Taiwan, located at Dayuan in Taoyuan City. It is operated by Taoyuan International Airport Corporation and serves as the primary hub for China Airlines, EVA Air and Starlux Airlines, as well as a base for Tigerair Taiwan and a major freight hub for FedEx Express. For a sim pilot it is a rewarding destination: a large, heavily used international airport with parallel long runways, full instrument approach coverage and dense airline traffic typical of a major Asian hub.
The airport lies in Dayuan District, Taoyuan City, on Taiwan's northwest coast, roughly 40 km west of central Taipei. As Taiwan's principal international airport it sits within controlled airspace served by Taipei Approach, with Taipei Tower providing aerodrome control. It is one of two airports serving the Taipei area, the other being the smaller Taipei Songshan Airport within the city itself, which now mainly handles domestic, chartered and limited international services.
The field has two parallel physical runways aligned 05/23. Runway 05L/23R is 11,978 ft long, hard-surfaced, lit and equipped with ILS on both directions. Runway 05R/23L is 10,953 ft/10,952 ft long, also hard-surfaced, lit and equipped with ILS on both directions. Field elevation is 82 ft.
Radio services include Taipei Approach on 119.6 MHz and 123.5 MHz, an ATIS broadcast on 125.1 MHz, Clearance Delivery on 127.6 MHz, a Ground frequency of 121.7 MHz, Departure on 128.5 MHz, and Taipei Tower on 118.7 MHz. A separate frequency of 121.8 MHz is listed for CLD. Both runway pairs are equipped with ILS, supporting instrument approaches in the low-visibility conditions that can affect the coastal plain.
The airport opened for commercial operations on 26 February 1979 as Chiang Kai-shek International Airport, built to relieve the overcrowded Taipei Songshan Airport, which had become too constrained by its city-centre location to expand. The project was part of the Ten Major Construction Projects pursued by the Taiwanese government in the 1970s. It was originally planned under the name Taoyuan International Airport but was renamed in memory of former President Chiang Kai-shek; the name reverted, in modified form, to Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport on 6 September 2006 under the Executive Yuan of President Chen Shui-bian, reflecting the political associations of the Chiang Kai-shek name with the Kuomintang's period of one-party rule. Terminal 2 opened on 29 July 2000, with EVA Air the first airline to move in, and the remaining gates opened in January 2005 for China Airlines, which became the only carrier operating from both terminals. A third terminal, designed by British firm Rogers Stirk Harbour and Partners, has been under construction with an expected opening in 2026, intended to raise the airport's annual passenger capacity to 86 million.
Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport remains Taiwan's busiest and largest airport, handling a record 46.5 million passengers and 2.3 billion kg of freight in 2018, and continuing to rank among the busiest airports worldwide for international passenger and freight traffic. It is the primary hub for China Airlines, EVA Air and Starlux Airlines, and also a base for Mandarin Airlines, Uni Air and Tigerair Taiwan, with substantial freight operations including FedEx Express. Ongoing expansion includes the planned Terminal 3, intended to significantly increase capacity.
