Philippine Airlines will configure its A350-900s with a premium three class layout and plans to operate the aircraft on non-stop flights from Manila to the US west coast and New York, as well as on services to new destinations in Europe. The aircraft will enable the carrier to operate non-stop service on the 8,000 nautical mile Manila – New York route all year round with a full passenger load.
The Philippines is set to become the centre of the Asian aviation industry on Sunday when top decision makers arrive for Routes Asia 2016 (6-8 March), the largest route development forum in the region.
The new routes will support the growing demand for travel between Japan and Manila, a popular year-round destination with a wide selection of shopping, leisure activities as well as vibrant arts, entertainment and gaming. The flights are also expected to meet demand from Japanese travellers, and Filipino expatriates residing in Japan as well as Filipino holiday-makers or those visiting family members.
Emirates has opened reservations for a new daily flight linking its Dubai International Airport hub with both Mactan–Cebu International Airport and Clark International Airport (formerly the Diosdado Macapagal International Airport) from the end of March 2016. The flight will operate on a triangular basis and will be flown using a two-class Boeing 777-300ER
The new services will increase capacity between the two cities by almost 2,500 seats per week enabling Etihad to better serve the market in the UAE and the Philippines for point-to-point travel as well as supporting behind and beyond demand via its Abu Dhabi International Airport hub.
This expansion will see Cebu Pacific Air offering its trademark low fares to the sizeable Filipino community in Guam, which currently comprises about 26 per cent of the island's population, according to the US Central Intelligence Agency World Fact Book.
With effect from October 26, 2015, Qantas will operate an additional four Sydney-Hong Kong services each week, on top of the current daily services available from Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. Meanwhile, services between Sydney and Manila will increase from four to five per week between early December 2015 and late March 2016 to offer more capacity during the peak holiday season.
Following an expanded Air Service Agreement signed between the State of Qatar and the Republic of the Philippines, the Doha-based carrier will now operate a full twice-daily service to Manila, in addition to its daily flights between Clark and Doha.
Flag carrier, Philippine Airlines has announced it will launch services to Auckland from Manila later this year, marking the first time the airline has ever operated in New Zealand.
The carrier will offer a twice weekly service on the route from June 4, 2015, adding to its existing flights between Manila and Dubai, United Arab Emirates; Kuwait City, Kuwait and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Cebu Pacific also currently serves Dammam, Saudi Arabia, but that flight will terminate at the end of this month.
It was revealed at World Routes in Chicago today that that the 2016 Routes Asia forum will head to the Philippines with the event taking place in the vibrant capital city of Manila between March 6th and 8th.
A World Routes media briefing confirmed recent reports that Cebu Pacific Air will be inaugurating a three times weekly link between Manila’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport and King Fahd International Airport in Dammam from October 5, 2014. This will be just days after the carrier makes its debut in the country with flights to King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh commencing on October 1, 2014.
The total traffic for the four days is an increase of 36 per cent over the same period at the end of Eid Al Fitr in 2013, when 133,007 passengers took an Etihad Airways flight.
The two destinations join Dubai in the network of Cebu Pacific Air's long-haul division which flies Airbus A330-300s configured in an all-Economy, 436 seat arrangement.
In the first change to the Philippine - Canada Bilateral Air Services Agreement (BASA) since December 2008, the two sides have agreed to increase the frequency entitlement for each side from seven flights a week to 14. Fifth freedom rights were also increased from four to five per week.
The Star Alliance member has eight Dreamliners on order, all to be leased from International Lease Finance Corporation (ILFC). This includes six 787-8s due from this year (four in 2014 and two in 2015) and two of larger 787-9s, which will follow in 2017.
Etihad Airways' MoU with Philippine Airlines is an important milestone in the long-standing relationship between the two flag carriers as well as ties between Abu Dhabi and the Philippines. More than 700,000 Filipinos live in the UAE and account for much of the traffic on the Abu Dhabi - Manila route each year, one of the busiest routes in the entire Etihad network.
A recently renegotiated Air Service Agreement (ASA) between Japan and Philippines will see All Nippon Airways (ANA), Cebu Pacific Air, and Philippine Airlines all introduce more regular flights between Manila and Japanese destinations during the summer 2014 schedule.
