Typhoon Champi: Hong Kong Carriers Cancel and Delay Taiwan, Okinawa Flights

Typhoon Champi is disrupting flights, ferries and tourist sites across East Asia, with airlines in Hong Kong, Japan and Taiwan cancelling or delaying services as the storm approaches. Taiwan has issued a land warning, and the island's worst conditions are expected on Friday and Saturday.

Key facts

• HK Express said it will cancel six flights between Hong Kong and Taipei.
• Four other HK Express services, to Taichung or Kaohsiung, are postponed to Saturday.
• Hong Kong Airlines cancelled flights HX658 and HX659 between Hong Kong and Okinawa on Thursday.
• Taiwan's transport ministry said 125 flights were cancelled there on Thursday, mostly domestic.
• Japan Airlines, ANA and Skymark cancelled more than 100 flights between Thursday and Sunday, affecting more than 11,000 passengers.

What is happening to flights from Hong Kong?

HK Express said it will waive rebooking fees and fare differences for affected passengers when the new departure falls within two weeks before or after the original date. Passengers can also claim a refund for the unused portion of their ticket without cancellation or refund fees.

Greater Bay Airlines said its flights were operating normally, but that individual services to Taipei and Okinawa may be adjusted as the storm gets closer. It advised passengers travelling in the next two days to check flight status on its website before leaving for the airport, and said it will notify passengers by text or email.

What about Japan and Taiwan?

In Japan, Japan Airlines, ANA and Skymark cancelled more than 100 flights between Thursday and Sunday, mostly domestic. The storm is forecast to pass over Yonaguni, Japan's westernmost inhabited island, in Okinawa Prefecture.

In Taiwan, most of Thursday's 125 cancellations were domestic, and the rail network was unaffected so far. Ferry services have been suspended and many tourist attractions closed. President Lai Ching-te urged people to prepare and avoid mountain and coastal areas. "A little more preparation means less risk," he wrote on Facebook. Mobile phone alerts about waves exceeding six metres were sent to coastal towns, and rainfall approaching one metre is forecast for northern mountain areas, including hills near Taipei. Weather experts warned the storm's effects could last nearly two days.

Authorities deployed extra water pumps in flood-prone areas and ordered checks of drainage systems and flood-control equipment. Taiwan's interior ministry said no evacuations had been reported.

How strong is the storm and where is it going?

Taiwan's Central Weather Administration said gusts near the centre exceeded 227 kmph. Another account put sustained winds at nearly 185mph, the equivalent of a Category 5 hurricane, though wind figures differ between agencies and one report cited 140mph winds. Champi weakened slightly on Thursday but remained extremely powerful.

Reports also differ on its exact position: one placed the storm about 520 km southeast of Taiwan's southern tip, another almost 250km southeast of Yilan County in the northeast. Both describe a track passing northeastern Taiwan late Friday and then turning north toward the Chinese coast.

Landfall forecasts are not consistent. China's National Meteorological Centre expects Champi to come ashore on Taiwan's eastern coast around Saturday and then in China's Fujian province as a severe tropical storm, while forecasters in the Philippines and Taiwan did not predict a landfall.

What about the Philippines and China?

In the Philippines, where the storm is called Rosal, weather agency PAGASA warned of waves up to 12m along the northern and eastern coasts of Batanes and 9m around the Babuyan Islands. The storm's centre was around 400km east of Basco, Batanes, on Thursday.

China issued a blue typhoon warning, the lowest level in its four-tier system. Even so, local authorities in eastern Zhejiang province drew up emergency evacuation plans for vulnerable communities, and eastern China is preparing for possible evacuations.

What this means for travellers

Travellers flying between Hong Kong and Taipei, Taichung, Kaohsiung or Okinawa over the next few days should check their flight status with the airline before leaving for the airport. HK Express passengers whose flights are cancelled can rebook within two weeks of the original date at no extra cost, or take a refund for the unused part of their ticket.

Anyone in Taiwan should follow official warnings and stay away from mountain and coastal areas, where waves above six metres and heavy rain are forecast.

What happens next depends on the storm's path. Taiwan's forecaster Chang Cheng-Chuan said the warnings are expected to be lifted on Saturday afternoon, once Champi moves away from Taiwan toward Japan's Kyushu island. Japanese airline cancellations run through Sunday, and HK Express has pushed some Taiwan flights to Saturday. Airlines say further changes will be posted on their websites.