Philippine LCCs eye Middle East routes
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Philippine low-cost carriers, Cebu Pacific (CEB) and Zest Air, have sought regulatory approval to fly to Middle Eastern cities, the Manila Times reported.
In filing the request with the country’s Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB), CEB said it wanted to serve the increasing number of overseas Filipino workers and tourists in cities such as Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
Zest Air, formerly Asian Spirit, is reportedly seeking a permit to fly three times weekly from Manila to Kuwait using its Boeing 767-200. It also wants to fly three times weekly from Manila to Dubai. If approve, the routes could be launched as early as July, the report said.
The opportunities for CEB and Zest derive from the recently signed aviation Memorandum of Understanding between the Philippines and UAE, and proposed MoUs with Bahrain, Qatar and Kuwait. Under the terms of the UAE MoU, weekly flight entitlements were increased from just nine to 89, including 42 from Clark, where CEB set up an international base late last year.
The report showed Philippines Department of Labor statistics showing that Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Kuwait and Bahrain are included in the top 10 destinations for overseas Filipino workers.
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