Philippine Airlines is set to mount flights to New Zealand by next month, targeting Filipinos working in Auckland and Australia.
The airline, owned by tobacco tycoon Lucio Tan, said the four times a week service to Auckland via Cairns in Australia will start on December 2.
“The route will stimulate passenger traffic along three travel streams—Manila-Cairns, Manila-Auckland as well as Cairns-Auckland. The new service allows Philippine Airlines to cater to the travel needs of business and leisure travelers and showcase its distinct brand of service marked by Filipino warmth, charm and hospitality,” PAL president and chief operating officer Jaime Bautista said.
“Filipinos residing in New Zealand will find the new service as their convenient link to their home country,” he said.
The Manila-Cairns-Auckland service will utilize the 156-seater Airbus 320, flying every Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday.
Auckland Airport, the largest and busiest airport in New Zealand is the second largest in Australasia.
PAL’s first foray into New Zealand provides a most convenient route for the more than 44,000 Filipinos residing in New Zealand to visit home, while allowing Auckland and Cairns residents to discover Manila or connect to PAL’s 30 domestic and 39 international destinations.
Cairns and Auckland will become PAL’s 37th and 38th international points respectively, while Port Moresby in Papua New Guinea, set to be launched on Dec 18, will be its 39th international destination.
Records show passenger travel from the Philippines to New Zealand increased 9.4 percent over the last five years, while the New Zealand to the Philippines travel grew 11.6 percent over the same period.
The stopover in Cairns will enable Kiwis to visit northern Australia while those from Cairns can find a lot to explore at Auckland.
PAL is offering an introductory fare of US$880 for a roundtrip, economy class and $2,700 for business class on the Manila-Auckland route; $705 for economy class and $2,044 for business class for a roundtrip Auckland-Manila route. Roundtrip fare for Auckland to Cairns, Australia starts at $378 for economy class and $1,658 for business class; roundtrip Cairns-Auckland route at $368 for economy class and $1,832 for business class; roundtrip Cairns- Manila at $523 for economy class and $2,452 for business class; and roundtrip Manila-Cairns at $1,200 for economy class and $2,950 for business class.
The Center for Asia Pacific Aviation earlier urged PAL to take a break from expanding its international routes and instead plan ahead of possible higher fuel prices.
“Low fuel prices and improved profitability give PAL an opportunity to take a pause to let all the international capacity added in recent years be fully absorbed. Now is the time to pursue relatively modest expansion and plan for a possible future with higher oil prices,” CAPA said in a report.
The think tank said PAL’s international expansion over the couple of years was “extremely ambitious,” which increased the size of its international network by 70 percent in three years.