PAL puts up more weekly Cebu flights

MANILA, Philippines — Flag carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) is ready for the peak travel demand as it has set up almost 300 flights a week from Cebu to some of the most popular destinations here and abroad.

PAL is scaling up its domestic network from the Mactan-Cebu International Airport (MCIA) this month, offering 287 flights per week in the gateway to 18 destinations locally.

On top of this, PAL is raising its passenger capacity to and from Cebu to more than 39,000 seats by allocating larger aircraft on select routes.

The airline is designating 199-seater Airbus A321s in lieu of 86-seater De Havilland Dash 8-400 New Generation for flights to high-traffic routes. PAL Express president Rabbi Vincent Ang said the expansion in Cebu would drive more tourism in time for the dry season.

In particular, PAL is scaling up Cebu flights to Caticlan – the gateway to Boracay – to 21 a week and to Siargao to 26 weekly. The carrier is also hiking Cebu services to Busuanga, Davao, Puerto Princesa and Tacloban.

To date, PAL operates 11 flights a day between Manila and Cebu to support business and leisure travel in the country’s busiest metros.

Recently, PAL launched weekly flights between Cebu and Catarman to support air travel in Western and Eastern Visayas.

“The additional flights and greater seat capacity reflect our flag carrier’s commitment to increase connectivity, to boost the economy, and help drive tourism across our inter-island network from Cebu,” Ang said.

Internationally, PAL is set to introduce a new service in Cebu, a direct flight to Ho Chi Minh by May, to give travelers from Visayas direct access to Vietnam. The airline last year resumed Cebu flights to Osaka in response to the clamor for more Japan schedules.

Currently, PAL offers Cebu flights to Incheon and Narita. The carrier owned by the Tans hopes to contribute to Cebu’s economy by bringing in more trade and travel to the province.

PAL mounts non-stop flights from Manila, Cebu, Clark and Davao to 31 destinations in the Philippines and 37 cities in Asia and the Pacific, Australia and North America.