CLARK FREEPORT – “It’s a setback.” Thus, said Department of Tourism (DOT) Regional Director Ronnie Tiotuico with the pull-out of the Philippines Air Asia hub from the Clark International Airport (CIA) here.
“It is definitely sad news to Clark and the whole tourism industry in Central Luzon. AirAsia has become synonymous to Clark especially in terms of low cost carriers (LCC) which have captured the C and D market in the airline industry,” he said.
But Tiotuico said he remains optimistic with the entry of Emirates Airlines on October 1 and Qatar Airways on October 28 at the CIA. He said the tourism industry has been given a breather with the entry of the two Middle Eastern airlines.
“This is a welcome development that could somehow mitigate the absence of AirAsia in Clark,“ he added.
Last Friday, news came in that Philippine’s Air Asia is moving out its hub from the CIA to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) in Manila. This was confi rmed by Air Asia Berhad CEO Tony Fernandes himself in his official Twitter account.
“AirAsia Phillipines is moving to Manila. More choice more value. The world’s best low cost airline going to NAIA,” Fernandes said on his Twitter account (@ tonyfernandes).
Meanwhile, Philippines’ AirAsia has announced that it will be temporarily suspending its flights to Davao, Kalibo, Taipei and Hong Kong from the Clark International Airport effective October 9.
Flights between Clark and Hong Kong, however, will continue to operate from December 20 until January 6, 2014 to cater to the strong holiday demand.
Maan Hontiveros, CEO of Philippines’ AirAsia said, “The temporary suspension is primarily to manage costs following the recent grounding of Zest Air by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP). This has affected many factors and allocating necessary resources such as aircraft and crew is critical to ensure its recovery.”
“Right now we need to focus our resources to support Zest Air where we have significant economic interest, and we believe in Zest Air’s potential with their Manila based operations,” added Hontiveros.
