CebuPac readies Dammam flights

MANILA, Philippines - Budget carrier Cebu Air Inc. (Cebu Pacific) of taipan John Gokongwei is set to fly to its fourth long haul destination as it readies non-stop flights between Manila and Dammam in Saudi Arabia next month.

Alex Reyes, general manager of the long-haul division of Cebu Pacific, said the low-cost carrier would fly three times a week to Dammam starting Oct. 4 to serve over one million Filipinos working and living in Saudi Arabia.

“Cebu Pacific is proud to offer all our kababayans in Saudi Arabia, P1 fares and year round low fares that are up to 40 percent lower than what’s being offered by other airlines,” Reyes said.

He pointed out that the airline also offers the most convenient connections to the most number of destinations in the Philippines.

“With Cebu Pacific’s low fares, they can enjoy being with their families and loved ones more often,” he added.

To introduce its newest long-haul destination, Cebu Pacific offers a special introductory seat sale fare of P1 on Sept. 5-10 or until seats last for travel between Oct. 4 and Dec. 31. After the seat sale, lowest year-round fares start at P3,499.

Currently, Reyes said Cebu Pacific operates non-stop daily services between Manila and Dubai and non-stop thrice weekly flights between Manila and Kuwait.

He said the Gokongwei-led airline is set to mount direct flights between Manila and Sydney in Australia starting Sept. 9.

The airline recently got the green light from the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) to mount additional flights to five international routes: Singapore, Myanmar, New Zealand and Macau from Manila, as well as Cebu – Hong Kong.

The regulator granted Cebu Pacific seven flights weekly from Manila to New Zealand as well as an additional 1,260 entitlements from Manila to Singapore, allowing it to upgrade its current daily Airbus A320 service to an Airbus A330 service.

Likewise, CAB designated Cebu Pacific as an official Philippine carrier to New Zealand, Myanmar and Canada.

Cebu Pacific has a fleet of 51 aircraft consisting of 10 Airbus A319, 28 A320, five A330 and eight ATR-72 500.

It is in the middle of a $4-billion refleeting program involving the acquisition of close to 50 Airbus aircraft. The low-cost carrier is scheduled to take the delivery of 11 more brand-new Airbus A320, 30 A321neo and one A330 aircraft between this year and 2021.

The carrier is looking at mounting long haul flights to the US, particularly Guam and Hawaii, after the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) upgraded the aviation safety rating of the Philippines back to Category 1 last April.

Cebu Pacific’s net income surged 125 percent to P3.18 billion in the first half of the year from P1.41 billion in the same period last year as revenues grew 23 percent to P26.72 billion from P21.73 billion.

The airline said it flew 8.5 million passengers in the first six months of the year or 13.8 percent higher compared to 7.5 million in the same period last year as the number of flights inched up by 4.4 percent.

It also cited the 7.9 percent rise in average fares to P2,450 per passenger in the first half from P2,270 in the same period last year as a major contributor to the increase in revenues.