Cebu Pacific Adds Xiamen Flights

Filipino budget carrier Cebu Pacific will fly to all major coastal cities in China when it commences a three times weekly link between Manila and Xiamen from March 23, 2012. This will bring its international network to 18 destinations and will add to its existing daily services to Shanghai and three times weekly flights to Beijing and Guangzhou (a fourth Beijing rotation is due to be introduced from January 7, 2012).

Xiamen is a highly industrialised city in the Fujian Province, on the Southeastern coast of mainland China. It was recently ranked China’s 2nd most suitable city for living by a Beijing-based polling agency, with highly developed banking services and open policy towards foreign investment and trade.

“Cebu Pacific looks forward to expanding its network in China, especially with Xiamen and Fujian Province being the well-known hometown of about 85% Filipino-Chinese in the Philippines, including the Gokongweis,” said Candice Iyog, VP for Marketing and Distribution, Cebu Pacific. “We hope our thrice weekly flights to Xiamen will boost trade tremendously between China and the Philippines.”

During the third quarter of 2011 Cebu Pacific said it has carried 30 per cent more passengers on its services to mainland China than the same period in 2009 as its low-fares have stimulated traffic. The Manila – Xiamen route is already served by Philippine Airlines and China Southern Airlines which together carried an estimated 154,000 O&D passengers during the past year, up 8.5 per cent on the previous 12 month period. The average one-way fare on the route is an estimated $127, a figure that is sure to fall following Cebu Pacific’s launch.