Cebu Pacific increases Cebu-South Korea flights

BUDGET carrier Cebu Pacific (CEB) said on Wednesday that it is increasing the number of direct flights from Cebu to Seoul, South Korea, because demand has gone up.

“Starting Sept. 9, CEB intends to increase its flights from Cebu to Seoul (Incheon) to a daily operation from its current twice-a-week service,” the airline said in an e-mailed statement.

“This ramp-up… reflects the travel demand amongst Filipinos and foreigners,” said CEB Corporate Communications Director Carmina Reyes-Romero.

The budget carrier’s Flight 5J 128 is scheduled to depart Mactan Cebu International Airport at 12:25 p.m. and will arrive at 6:10 p.m. (Korea local time). Its return flight, 5J 129, is scheduled to depart Seoul at 6:55 p.m. and arrive in Cebu at 10:50 p.m. (Philippine local time).

The airline said it currently flies to Cebu from 22 domestic destinations, including Bacolod, Boracay, Butuan, Cagayan de Oro, Calbayog, Camiguin, Clark, Coron, Davao, Dipolog, and Dumaguete.

“With our extensive domestic network in and out of Cebu, we are happy to provide more flight connections to our passengers. We hope this encourages everyJuan to fly more and travel international for less via Cebu Pacific,” Ms. Romero added.

Fuel surcharge is expected to decline from Level 12 to Level 9 next month due to the lower average price of jet fuel.

Level 9 on the Civil Aeronautics Board’s matrix permits a fuel surcharge per passenger of between P287 and P839 for domestic flights and between P947.39 and P7,044.27 for international flights.

On Tuesday, Cebu Pacific Chief Commercial Officer Xander Lao said that the budget carrier “welcomes” the adjustment in the fuel surcharge policy.

“We look forward to the lower fuel surcharge, which should help make fares more affordable and stimulate air travel,” he said in a statement. — Arjay L. Balinbin