Tuesday, April 15, 2008 Philippine Airlines to reopen Cebu hub for turbo-prop flights
MANILA - Philippine Airlines (PAL) will base its soon-to-be-acquired turbo-propeller fleet mainly in Cebu, in order to better serve the growing intra-regional market in Visayas and Mindanao, the flag carrier said yesterday.
While some turbo-prop flights will also operate out of Manila, especially in the initial phase, Cebu will be the focal point of turbo-prop operations as PAL re-establishes the city as its main hub in southern Philippines.
PAL’s turbo-prop services are scheduled to take off on May 5, 2008 with eight flights daily from Manila to Caticlan, gateway to the famed resort island of Boracay. Fifty-seater Bombardier Q300 aircraft will be deployed on the route.
The operation kicks into high gear in the third week of May when services of varying daily frequencies between Cebu and five points—Caticlan, Bacolod, Tacloban, Butuan and General Santos—are launched.
In the same week, a daily flight between Manila and Busuanga in northern Palawan will also commence, along with a ninth daily frequency to Caticlan.
More points
In the last week of May, three more points will be added to the Cebu hub network: Davao, with thrice-daily flights; Iloilo, twice daily; and Puerto Princesa, a single flight every day.
A slightly larger turbo-prop model, the 76-seater Bombardier Q400, will operate most of the Cebu services.
More destinations in Visayas and Mindanao will be served from Cebu, as well as from Manila, in the coming months as PAL takes delivery of more Q300 and Q400 turbo-props.
The flag carrier is acquiring a total of nine aircraft of both types—three Q300s and six Q400s— with deliveries spread out over the next four-to-six months.
Integral part
PAL operated a bustling Cebu hub for most of its 67-year history, when it was the sole airline mandated to provide air services to far-flung rural communities. As such, turbo-props were an integral part of PAL’s fleet for decades.
When PAL entered receivership in 1999, however, its rehabilitation plan stipulated an all-jet fleet, forcing the airline to dispose of its then turbo-prop type, the Fokker 50, and close its Cebu hub.
With PAL’s successful emergence from rehabilitation last year, resuming turbo-prop operations became a key priority, in keeping with the national carrier’s historic mandate of serving outlying areas.
In this effort, the restored Cebu hub will play a central role, PAL added. (PR)
