This developed after President Rodrigo Duterte announced during his first SONA the greater utilization of this airport as an international gateway which is seen to decongest the busy Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) in Manila.
On Monday, Secretary Arthur P. Tugade of the Department of Transportation (DOTr) said among the benefi ts from the recent trip of the President to China is the increase in flights through this airport.
Officials of CIAC led by its president and CEO Alexander Cauguiran met with Qatar Airlines country manager Paolo Pausini to further boost the cooperation and strengthen the partnership in developing and making Clark airport more active.
Qatar Airways is a major international carrier here with regular flights for its Clark-Doha route servicing mostly overseas Filipino workers (OFW) in Central and Northern Luzon.
Pausini said Qatar Airways is looking to expand its market by developing leisure, business and corporate traffic to Europe, the USA and the Gulf countries by tapping into its network in the Philippines, South Africa, North Africa and the Middle East.
Pausini said Qatar Airways is now working on an 18-month marketing plan which will be offered to CIAC for the two companies to work together.
For his part, Cauguiran said marketing for this airport and the airlines operating here is a key part of CIAC’s plans and programs set to be immediately implement.
“This is a plan of action we have approved during our recent strategic planning conference,” Cauguiran said, adding that CIAC will be conducting road tours to promote the flights at this airport.
Cauguiran also announced the development of a brand image for Clark.
“The marketing and branding campaign will target our catchment area like the Northern Philippines and the northern part of Metro Manila like Caloocan and Quezon City,” he said.
Cauguiran added that CIAC will be visiting many regions in the Northern Philippines, including the Camanava area during its road tours to inform potential passengers, particularly OFWs on the benefits and convenience of fl ying out and into Clark.
Pausini said Qatar Airways will cooperate in doing co-branding activities and roadshows together.
“It’s very important to promote Clark as even a better gateway to the crowded Manila,” he stressed.
Aside from Qatar Airways, Clark Airport is also host to other Middle East carrier such as Emirates Airlines that flies daily circular service via Dubai- Cebu-Clark. Others include South Korea’s Asiana Airlines and Jin Air via Incheon-Clark and Pusan; Dragonair via Clark-Hong Kong, Cebu Pacific via Singapore, Hong Kong and Macau and domestically to Cebu; Tiger Air via Singapore.
