Cebu Pacific starts flights using all-new Airbus fleet

Cebu Pacific Air (CEB) will start flights on an all-new Airbus fleet beginning today, July 27, making it the youngest fleet in the country and one of the youngest in Asia with a fleet age of less than seven months.

CEB’s all-Airbus fleet will be marked by the maiden flights of its Airbus A319 to Zamboanga and Butuan today.

The new Airbus fleet replaces the DC9 planes that served CEB for the last 10 years. The historic last flight of the airline’s DC9 aircraft was held yesterday with its 5J569 / 570 Manila-Cebu-Manila flight. The airline gave a ceremonial retirement to its DC9 fleet as the plane made its way to the domestic airport.

Lance Gokongwei, CEB president and CEO, said that the airline’s $670-million re-fleeting program is almost complete. "We have taken delivery of 10 brand-new Airbus aircraft and we await the delivery of four more until February 2007. As we continue to take delivery of our new and bigger planes, we are carrying on with our expansion program," he said.

"CEB has always been committed to serve the Filipinos. Our vision is to make it possible for everyone to fly by offering the lowest fares to wherever Cebu Pacific operates. And now with our brand-new and bigger Airbus planes, we will be able to offer more seats at lower fares to the public," Gokongwei added.

The Airbus A319s and A320s, which have larger seating capacity, feature the most modern design, the widest and most comfortable cabin, and the highest degree of operational efficiency of any single-aisle aircraft.

The airline currently services 17 domestic destinations and also flies to Hong Kong and Seoul, South Korea. It is also set to start its Manila-Legaspi service on Aug. 17 and Manila-Singapore on Aug. 31, 2006.

Now in its 11th year, CEB pioneered low fares in the country in March 1996. It also introduced travelers to on-time service, e-ticketing and on-line booking, setting the standards for airline innovation in the local aviation industry.