MNL primed as AirAsia hub

BALI, Indonesia—The AirAsia group is not only preparing to open direct flights between Manila and the United States, but is looking at making the Philippines one of its hubs, as other airlines launch more long-haul destinations amid increasing travel appetite.

Tony Fernandes, CEO of AirAsia parent company Capital A, told journalists last week they were “absolutely” interested in making Manila its hub to America. This means the carrier’s passengers can fly to the US via Manila as their connecting flight.

“I am a big fan of the Philippines,” he said on the sidelines of the Inaugural Bali International Airshow.

Fernandes said he would setup a meeting with the New Naia Infrastructure Corp. (NNIC) to realize this goal. NNIC is the San Miguel Corp.-led consortium that recently took over the operations and maintenance of Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia).

Earlier this year, the budget carrier said it was eyeing to launch the Manila-US flights by 2025.

This is part of the multi-hub strategy by the low-cost airline, which has presence in Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines and Thailand.

Long-haul launch

At present, flag carrier Philippine Airlines operates flights to Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, Honolulu and Guam. The Lucio Tan-led airline is also set to operate its maiden Manila-Seattle flights next month.

United Airlines, meanwhile, also launched in October last year its direct flight from Manila to San Francisco. It will also launch its San Francisco-Narita-Cebu flights next month.

Other players are also opening up more long-haul flights with Qantas Airways set to ply the Brisbane-Manila route by October. Starting December, Air France will run the much-awaited Manila-Paris flights.

In the first half this year, AirAsia Philippines saw its passenger volume increase by 9 percent to 3.58 million. It operated 21,338 flights in the six-month period, up 7 percent from the previous year.

The airline currently has 16 jets that serve local and international routes. INQ