Cebu Pacific said Wednesday it will expand operations in the Middle East with the additional frequency between Manila and Doha, Qatar starting July 9.
The Gokongwei-led airline said it would add a frequency between Manila and Doha to increase its services in the route to three times a week.
The additional flight will use wide-body Airbus A330 aircraft, with a configuration of 436 all-economy class seats.
Cebu Pacific is the only Philippine carrier flying non-stop between the two cities.
“CEB remains committed to bringing the Philippines closer to the growing Filipino community based in Qatar. We hope that with our additional frequency and lowest year-round fares, they will be encouraged to fly back home and reunite with their families and friends more often,” Cebu Pacific general manager for long-haul division Alex Reyes said.
“In the same way, we also look forward to enabling more Filipinos to visit Doha, gateway to the Gulf countries in the Middle East,” Reyes said.
Qatar has the third-largest Filipino community in the Middle East.
Cebu Pacific already serves the other markets for global Filipinos: United Arab Emirates via direct flights to Dubai, and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia via Riyadh. The airline is also the only Philippine carrier flying direct between Manila and Kuwait.
The airline offers flights to a network of more than 90 routes on 64 destinations, spanning Asia, Australia, the Middle East and USA.
Cebu Pacific’s 57-strong fleet is comprised of 7 Airbus A319, 36 Airbus A320, 6 Airbus A330, and 8 ATR 72-500 aircraft. It is one of the most modern aircraft fleets in the world.
Cebu Pacific said between 2016 and 2021, it expected delivery of two more brand-new Airbus A320, 30 Airbus A321neo and 16 ATR 72-600 aircraft.
The airline earlier reported a net income of P4.4 billion in 2015, up from P853.5 million in 2014.
The CEB Group generated revenues of P56.502 billion in 2015, up 8.7 percent from P52 billion in 2014.
Passenger revenues rose 6.2 percent to P42.681 billion last year from P40.188 billion registered in 2014.