Cebu Pacific,Tigerair plan to raise fares

MANILA, Philippines - Budget airlines Cebu Air Inc. (Cebu Pacific) and newly-acquired Tigerairway Philippines are set to raise fares by as much as 160 percent for both international and domestic routes amid the rising prices of aviation fuel in the world market as well as the continued weakening of the peso against the US dollar.

Jorenz Tanada, vice president for corporate affairs of Cebu Pacific, said in a text message that the airline filed the petition before the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) last Jan. 21 due to higher expenses brought about by the more expensive aviation fuel as well as the depreciation of the peso against the greenback.

“Cebu Pacific requested for an upward adjustment of fuel surcharges due to increasing fuel uplift costs, these are expenses related to transferring fuel, on top of the prevailing jet fuel price. These expenses have also been compounded by the weakening peso,” Tanada said.

Cebu Pacific intends to impose an upward adjustment of fuel surcharge of between 10 percent and 160 percent on 22 international routes from its hubs in Manila, Cebu, Iloilo, and Clark.

For flights from the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Manila, Cebu Pacific intends to raise the fuel surcharge for tickets to Jakarta by 136 percent to $59 from $25); Macau by 120 percent to $33 from $15; Hong Kong by 100 percent to $30 from $15; Bandar Seri Begawan by 67 percent to $25 from $15; Kuala Lumpur by 56 percent to $39 from $25; Kota Kinabalu by 53 percent to $23 from $15; and Taipei by 50 percent to $30 from $20.

Furthermore, flights from Manila to Bangkok would now be 47 percent more expensire to $48 from $30 (47 percent); Hanoi to $44 from $30 (47 percent); Shanghai to $51 from $37 (38 percent); Beijing to $68 from $50 (36 percent); Xiamen to $33 from $26 (27 percent); Siam Rep to $35 from $30 (17 percent); Narita to $55 from $50 (10 percent); and Nagoya to $55 from $50 (10 percent).

The airline is also raising the fuel surcharge on international tickets for flights from the Clark International Airport in Pampanga to Singapore $41 from $20 (105 percent); Macau to $26 from $10 (160 percent); and Hong Kong to $25 from $10 (150 percent).

The surcharge for flights from Cebu to Singapore would increase by 84 percent to $46 from $25 while for tickets to Bangkok would rise 60 percent to $56 from $35 while flights from Iloilo to Singapore would to $47 from $25 and to Hong Kong to $34 from $25.