Budget airline focuses on regional hubs

Cebu Pacific Air, the country’s largest budget airline group, is strengthening its regional hubs, partly in response to growing congestion in Manila’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport.

Cebu Pacific Air said wholly owned subsidiary Cebgo, which operates a fleet of turboprop planes, would launch daily flights between Clark and Caticlan as well as three times per week flights between Clark and Busuanga on March 15 this year. In addition, it will mount flights between Cebu and Cotabato four times per week on May 16, 2017.

“We believe that by opening these new routes, we are enabling more residents from Central and even North Luzon to travel to Palawan and Boracay—two of the world’s best islands, without having to make the trip to Metro Manila to catch their flights,” Alexander Lao, Cebgo president and CEO, said in a statement.

“With a direct Cebu-Busuanga route, the islands of Coron and Culion are easier to get to. Aside from boosting domestic tourism, our new routes will also enhance trade and investment as we also make available our cargo services,” he added.

In a recent analysis, think tank Capa-Center for Aviation said Cebu Pacific’s Cebgo was planning to move all operations out of Naia by 2018.

This strategy was in response to the lack of expansion options at the country’s main air gateway.