CLARK International Airport Corporation (CIAC) officials will lead on Wednesday the eighth leg of the North and Central Luzon Road Show in Baguio City to promote the international flights at the Diosdado Macapagal International Airport (DMIA), the premier gateway in the country.

CIAC President and chief executive officer Victor Jose Luciano will lead the 2009 North and Central Luzon Road show Product Update to be held at the Manor Convention Center at Camp John Hay.

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Representatives from various local government units (LGUs), travel agents, business chambers, civic organizations such as the Rotary Club, Jaycees, Lions Club, and Kiwanis, among others, as well as members of the Baguio Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Baguio Association of Hotels and Inns, Hotels and Restaurants Association, the Philippine Travel and Tours Association, the Philippine Travel Agencies Association, and local media are expected to attend the event.

Luciano said he welcomes Baguio City particularly the North Philippines to be part of the airport's thrust in promoting the international and domestic flights at DMIA.

CIAC launched its first-ever North and Central Luzon Show last March 20 held at the Hotel Vida at Clark Freeport Zone where more than 100 participants attended the event.

The road show is meant to introduce to the people of Northern and Central Luzon the availability of international and domestic flights at DMIA in Clark Freeport Zone in Pampanga. The road show had already visited the provinces of Zambales in Olongapo City, Tarlac, Nueva Ecija, Ilocos Norte, and Bulacan.

This month CIAC will visit Baguio City to introduce to the people DMIA as the premier gateway of the country envisioned by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

"I am happy to tell you that DMIA is fast becoming the premier airport of the country as a result of the growing numbers of passengers using the airport to get to their destinations in the Asia Pacific region," Luciano said.

He said, despite the global crisis, DMIA remains to be the most competitive Logistics Center in Asia where it continues to attract investments especially to foreign and local carriers that expressed interests in mounting flights at the airport, noting that passenger growth at DMIA last March reached to 25 percent compared to last year of the same period.

The road show will promote to the people of North and Central Luzon the availability of international and domestic flights at the DMIA being provided by foreign and local carriers such as Tiger Airways of Singapore, AirAsia of Malaysia, Asiana Airlines of South Korea, and local carriers Cebu Pacific, South East Asian Airlines (Seair), and Zest Air.

Asiana Airlines flies daily to Incheon, South Korea with connecting flights to the United States, China and Japan; Tiger Airways flies twice daily to Singapore; AirAsia flies daily to Kuala Lumpur and Kota Kinabalu; Cebu Pacific flies daily to Singapore, six times a week to Macau, five times a week to Hong Kong, twice a week to Bangkok, and daily to Cebu; South East Asian Airlines (Seair) and Zest Air flies via Clark-Caticlan for people who want to go the world-famous Boracay Island.

"This first-ever North and Central Luzon Road Show by CIAC will promote these international and domestic flights at the DMIA, which will serve the people of the Northern Philippines," Luciano said.

The North and Central Luzon Road Show will also cover Cagayan, Tuguegarao, and Isabela including participants from Nueva Vizcaya.

"This is an opportunity for us to inform the people that there is an airport right at their doorsteps that can bring them to various Southeast Asian countries for business or employment as is the case with our overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), most of which come from the Northern Philippine provinces," Luciano stressed.

He also pointed out that more airlines are expected to mount flights to more countries, particularly to the Middle East, as CIAC has secured various entitlements to Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Qatar just this year.

He added that CIAC will meet with local government officials in the said cities and municipalities as well as travel agencies in North and Central Luzon where the road show will be conducted to provide them with updates regarding recent developments at the DMIA as well as the Clark Freeport Zone.

DMIA is part of the Clark Civil Aviation Complex that occupies 2,367 hectares of land inside the Clark Freeport Zone. The aviation complex DMIA Passenger Terminal is managed and operated by CIAC

Arroyo designated DMIA as the country's premier international gateway and the center for logistics and services hub in the Pacific region.