Cebu Pac eyes additional flights to Brunei

MANILA, Philippines - Listed budget airline Cebu Air Inc. (Cebu Pacific) is seeking the green light from the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) to increase its flight frequency between the Philippines and Brunei. 

In its application, Cebu Pacific is calling for the re-allocation of additional one weekly frequency entitlement to Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei previously allocated to national flag carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL).

If approved by CAB, the low cost carrier intends to mount its fifth frequency schedule to Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei starting September.

The Philippines has an existing Confidential Memorandum of Understanding with Brunei. 

Cebu Pacific is looking at flying 15 million passengers this year or about 13 percent more than last year’s 13.26 million. However, the airline is likely to fall short of the target after air traffic in the Philippines posted a measly 1.1 percent growth in the first quarter. 

In the first quarter of the year, volume of passengers of Cebu Pacific inched up by 4.9 percent to 3.5 million from 3.4 million in the same quarter last year while number of flights increased by 4.8 percent as the number of aircraft went up to 43 from 40. 

The growth in the first quarter was less than half the double-digit growth in the volume of passengers booked last year.  

Cebu Pacific booked a double-digit 11 percent growth in volume of passengers to 13.26 million in 2012 from 11.93 million in 2011 on the back of robust domestic and international operations brought about by aggressive sales promotions last year. 

This was however lower than the target of 14 million passengers. 

Latest data from the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) showed that air traffic in the Philippines inched up by 1.1 percent to 9.576 million passengers in the first quarter from a year-ago level of 9.47 million.

The airline is unfazed by recent incidents involving two of its aircraft last month and is pursuing a massive re-fleeting program to beef up its fleet to reach 62 aircraft by 2017 from about 41 Airbus aircraft as of end-2012.