More than 830 hours of meetings, 1,000 delegates and in excess of 100 airlines saw the route development forum for the Asia Pacific region reach new heights.
Philippines-based carrier Cebu Pacific is set to expand its route network from its hubs at Cebu and Clark this year on the back of increasing demand from tourists for more direct connections. The announcement was made at Routes Asia 2019, which is taking place in Cebu.
This week: Qatar Airways converts ten A321neos; AirAsia commits to new Lombok hub; Cebu Pacific to add 12 aircraft; Norwegian to cut routes after fundraising and more.
Heavyweights from across the region will gather in Cebu City to share insight and debate the predicted outlook for the aviation industry in 2019 and beyond.
The grouping brings together many of the smaller low-cost operators across the Asia Pacific region and the partnership will allow them to better compete with some of the largest budget carriers like IndiGo in India, AirAsia across multiple countries and Qantas subsidiary Jetstar Airways across both the Asia and Pacific markets.
Philippine visitors to Guam grew by 125 percent in March 2016, compared to the same month last year, latest data from the Guam Visitors Bureau (GVB) showed. This led to the second best March in Guam's tourism history, with 133,335 visitor arrivals – just a few notches behind March 2013 with 136,728 visitors recorded. Total visitor arrivals for March 2016 rose 0.8 percent year-on-year.
Senior representatives from Guam’s Antonio B. Won Pat International Airport and Guam Visitors Bureau joined forces with Cebu Pacific Air to celebrate the low-cost carrier’s new link between Manila and the US island territory in Micronesia, in the Western Pacific during Routes Asia. The new route, Cebu Pacific’s first to the United States, will commence on March 15, 2016 and will be flown four times weekly using an Airbus A320.
Routes Asia has opened in Manila, Philippines with renewed calls for regulators and airports to address infrastructure issues in the region with senior executives of some of the region’s fastest-growing airlines highlighting it as one of the biggest issues still impacting growth and development in the region.
The surge in passengers has been driven by improving yields with seat load factor reaching a high of 86 per cent. This was particularly evident in the airline’s growing international network but was also buoyed by strong domestic sales.
This expansion will see Cebu Pacific Air offering its trademark low fares to the sizeable Filipino community in Guam, which currently comprises about 26 per cent of the island's population, according to the US Central Intelligence Agency World Fact Book.
Subject to the execution of final purchase documentation, Cebu Pacific, the largest operator in the Philippines, will take delivery of the new aircraft from the third quarter of 2016. They will initially be used to replace its current fleet of eight ATR 72-500 aircraft, which will be retired as the new aircraft enter service, as well as opening up market growth opportunities.
The carrier will offer a twice weekly service on the route from June 4, 2015, adding to its existing flights between Manila and Dubai, United Arab Emirates; Kuwait City, Kuwait and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Cebu Pacific also currently serves Dammam, Saudi Arabia, but that flight will terminate at the end of this month.
A World Routes media briefing confirmed recent reports that Cebu Pacific Air will be inaugurating a three times weekly link between Manila’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport and King Fahd International Airport in Dammam from October 5, 2014. This will be just days after the carrier makes its debut in the country with flights to King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh commencing on October 1, 2014.
Martin Rivers found out more about the business strategy, growth and development plans of Filipino low-cost carrier Cebu Pacific Air for our sister magazine, Routes News.
The two destinations join Dubai in the network of Cebu Pacific Air's long-haul division which flies Airbus A330-300s configured in an all-Economy, 436 seat arrangement.
