Philippines’ Cebu Pacific fuels recovery with relaunched routes, aircraft orders

Philippine budget airline Cebu Pacific has been relaunching routes to international destinations and ordering new jets to fuel its post-pandemic recovery.

The country’s biggest airline this month relaunched routes to Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, and opened a new direct route between Manila and Thailand’s Chiang Mai.

This year it has received 10 new aircraft, including three Airbus NEOs which were added to its fleet this month. It now operates 70 Airbus aircraft and 15 ATR turboprop planes.

In July the airline signed a memorandum of understanding with Airbus to purchase up to 152 aircraft in a $24 billion deal, the biggest order in Philippines aviation history.

“As the demand for air travel to continues to rise, we are confident that we will be able to cater to more passengers looking to connect with other people or discover new destinations with Cebu Pacific,” president and chief commercial officer Xander Lao said in a press release.

It now operates in 35 domestic and 26 international destinations spread across Asia, Australia, and the Middle East.

Cebu Pacific is also considering acquiring AirSWIFT, another Philippines aviation company which mostly operates short-range flights to and from resorts.

Leaders of the two airlines aim to reach an agreement in the upcoming months, according to local media.

With strong discounts such as zero-fare flights and limited offers, the company served 20.86 million passengers last year, while its competitor Philippines Airlines recorded only 14.7 million.

The Philippines saw the number of passengers on international flights more than doubled last year to 24.81 million, nearly 80% of 2019 levels, according to the Civil Aeronautics Board.