Cebu Pacific to offer more GenSan flights

GENERAL SANTOS CITY, July 5 (PNA) – Budget airline Cebu Pacific is set to launch at least three more flights every week from this city to Manila in a bid to cope with the growing demand for low-cost airline travel in the area.

Candice Iyog, Cebu Pacific's vice president for marketing and product, said they will add three morning flights every week starting July 11 to get a slice of the morning cargo and passenger traffic, which is being served by Philippine Airlines and sister airline Air Philippines.

Iyog said the additional flights are scheduled every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, expanding its regular weekly flights to 10.

"This translates to a 42 percent increase in capacity for the Manila-General Santos route," she said in a press statement.

Iyog said they will utilize an A320 aircraft for the additional flights, which will depart from Manila at 7:05 am and will arrive in this city at 8:55. The return flight will take off at 9:25 am and land in Manila at 11:15am.

"We hope that by adding morning flights, we will be able to provide ease and convenience for both business and leisure travelers to General Santos," she said.

Cebu Pacific, the country's second largest carrier, currently maintains daily mid-day flights from Manila to this city and afternoon return flights since it opened its services here in October 2006.

Philippine Airlines offers direct return flights daily from this city to Manila while its sister company Air Philippines is servicing daily connecting flights from this city to Manila, Iloilo and Bacolod via Cebu City. PAL also runs a daily turbo-prop service to Cebu and this city.

With the opening of the three additional flights here, Iyog said more low fare seats will be available for the route.

According the company's website, its lowest "Go" promotional fares for one-way and round-trip travels for the General Santos-Manila route is presently at zero or passengers will only have to pay for the P1,499 tax and fuel surcharge.

Cebu Pacific expanded its operations here in 2006 to mainly cater to late cargo coming from the city, especially the tuna products.

The city, dubbed as the country's tuna capital, ships more than 10 tons of fresh chilled tuna a day, to Manila en route to international markets such as Japan and the United States.