Japan budget airline seeks license to operate in PH

Vanilla Air, the budget airline of Japan’s ANA Holdings, has formalized its intention to operate in the Philippines via an application in the Civil Aeronautics Board for a foreign air carrier’s permit.

This is a key requirement before it can be allowed to operate scheduled international flights in the country.

Vanilla Air did not specifically say where it planned to operate, but the destination was likely Cebu.

On its website, Vanilla Air is already advertising  one-way Narita, Tokyo to Mactan, Cebu flights for 14,890 Yen (P7,000). It said the flights would start on Dec. 25, 2016.

The CAB said Vanilla Air’s request would be considered in a hearing on Oct. 26.

The airline, which operates a fleet of nine Airbus A320s, was named Air Asia Japan when it started in 2011 under a partnership between ANA and Malaysia’s Air Asia Berhad.

AirAsia exited  the venture in 2013, leading to the carrier’s rebranding as Vanilla Air.

The entry of Vanilla Air would strengthen the ANA Group’s presence in the Philippines. All Nippon Airways already flies between Tokyo and Manila.

Japanese tourism has been booming since the country decided to further liberalize visa procedures for visitors.

“Demand was restrained by onerous visa procedures for Asian countries. Reducing or liberalizing those in mainland China and Southeast Asia ushered in growth in visitor arrivals and for airlines in the marketplaces,” Capa-Center for Aviation said in a report.

In May, Vanilla Air along with seven other budget carriers in the region including Cebu Pacific, the Philippines’s biggest budget carrier, established the Value Alliance.

The group, also composed of Jeju Air, Nok Air, NokScoot, Scoot, Tigerair Singapore, Tigerair Australia, is considered the largest alliance of budget carriers in the world.

Value Alliance airlines cover a third of the earth and serve more than 160 destinations with a collective fleet of 176 aircraft across Asia Pacific.