Cebu Pacific starts gradual resumption of international flights

Budget carrier Cebu Pacific is set to reinstate its flights to Hong Kong, Nagoya, Osaka, and Taipei this month, as it seeks to rebuild international operations.

In an advisory, CebPac said it will increase its flight frequencies to Seoul in South Korea to thrice weekly starting August 16, from two flights a week currently.

It will also increase its flights between Manila and Tokyo with additional frequency every Sunday starting August 22.

CebPac already increased its flights to Singapore to thrice weekly starting August 4 from only twice previously. Flights depart Manila every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, while return flights will be every Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday.

Daily flights to Hong Kong from Manila will resume on August 11, and flights to Nagoya, Osaka, and Taipei start the week of August 14.

“We remain cautiously optimistic as we gradually rebuild our international network,” Cebu Pacific Vice President for Marketing and Customer Experience Candice Iyog said.

“We recognize the need for non-leisure travel to these routes and we assure everyJuan that we are committed to keep prioritizing safety as we restore trust and confidence in air travel,” she added.

Special commercial flights from Dubai to Manila are mounted every Wednesday, amid the travel ban in place.

400 Filipinos returning home

In a separate statement, CebPac said it will fly 400 Filipinos home from Dubai on Thursday, August 5, following the 264 Filipinos who arrived in Manila the previous day.

In an advisory, Cebu Pacific said the Filipinos will arrive in Davao via flight 5J 09, in coordination with the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) and the Philippine Consulate of Dubai.

The flight comes amid the extension of the travel restrictions imposed on the United Arab Emirates and nine other countries amid the threat of the highly-transmissible Delta variant of the coronavirus.

“We continue to collaborate with the government and other stakeholders so we may bring more Filipinos home to their families,” Cebu Pacific Chief Strategy Officer Alex Reyes said.

Commercial air travel to and from Metro Manila was restricted from March 2020 and only resumed in June last year, after the easing of the community quarantine.

Cebu Air Inc. in May secured some $250 million from the issuance of convertible bonds to private equity investors. — RSJ, GMA News