BEIJING, Jan. 17 (Xinhuanet) -- Air tickets for 20 chartered flights between Beijing and Taiwan during the oncoming Spring Festival holiday season were sold out by Sunday night, airlines said Tuesday.

    The occupancy of Air China's chartered flights had risen from 80 percent last year to 100 percent, said Air China President Li Jiaxiang.

    Air China and Hainan Airlines will operate chartered flights between Beijing and Taiwan between Jan. 25 and Feb. 5.

    The lifting of a restriction on passengers' status is the main cause of the quick sales of air tickets, industry observers say.

    Li predicted that, if "three direct links" - direct mail, transport and trade - were established across the Taiwan Straits, traffic volume between the mainland and Taiwan would reach 5 million passengers per year, generating 5 billion yuan (625 million U.S. dollars) revenue for airline companies.

    The Spring Festival, the Chinese Lunar New Year, is the most important occasion for family reunions. The 2006 Spring Festival will start on Jan. 29.

    Six mainland airlines have been chosen to operate chartered flights across the Taiwan Straits from Jan. 20 to Feb. 13, 2006, while another six Taiwan-based airline companies last month announced their plans for direct chartered flights across the Taiwan Straits during the Spring Festival. Enditem