Yonhap via The Korea Herald/Asia News Network
By Nov. 24, Filipinos will have more options to fly to South Korea as Korean Air is set to add a fourth daily service from Manila.
The Korean flag carrier, in a statement, said the new scheduled flight will depart from Manila at 2:20 am and arrive in Seoul at 7:25 am, allowing passengers to transit to the airline’s North American network.
READ: Airlines gear up to ride booming travel to South Korea
For the fourth service, South Korea’s largest airline will deploy an A321neo aircraft comprising eight lie-flat business class seats and 174 economy class seats.
“As air travel demand continues to grow, we are strengthening our commitment to the Philippines market through continued investment and service expansion,” said Byung Kwon Lee, Philippines country manager for Korean Air.
“Even in an evolving operating environment, we remain focused on providing enhanced connectivity and travel options for both business and leisure travelers, supporting the growing commercial and tourism links between our regions and beyond,” he added.
The additional flight is seen to further strengthen the ties between the countries.
In January to September, about 1.19 million tourists from South Korea visited the Philippines. The number is 12 percent higher than 1.07 million passengers in the same period last year.
The tourist arrivals from South Korea represent nearly 27 percent of the total for the period, making the country the biggest source of foreign guests.
“As part of its ongoing network expansion strategy, the airline will continue to develop its services between the two countries and beyond, leveraging its extensive global network spanning 120 destinations across 43 countries,” Korean Air said.
Apart from Korea, the Philippines has been establishing more connectivity to other countries as well.
United Airlines began operating its San Francisco-Narita-Cebu flights while Qantas Airways started servicing the Brisbane-Manila route in October.
Philippine Airlines also launched its Manila-Seattle flights while Cebu Pacific flew its maiden Manila-Chiang Mai flights last month.
The highly anticipated Manila-Paris flights will be operated by Air France starting December.