More flights to the Bacolod-Silay Airport are expected to be granted with the drop in COVID-19 cases and the downgrading of the alert level status of Negros Occidental.
Provincial Administrator Rayfrando Diaz said Cebu Pacific is requesting that it be allowed to increase its flights from two to four a day and he thinks Philippine Airlines will do the same.
They are in the process of consolidating the airlines’ requests so by the time the new executive order of Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson is issued for March 1, the additional flights can be included, Diaz said.
A lot of Negrenses are ready to visit relatives, go on vacation and students enrolled in schools in Metro Manila may have to return to face-to-face classes, Diaz said.
“This is a happy development and I hope it continues, and that we have seen the last of COVID-19,” he added.
Diaz said he will consult with the governor on the requests for increased flights to see what his decision will be.
He thinks as long as the minimum requirement of submitting an S-PASS and vaccination card is met, there will not be a problem, Diaz said.
The S-PASS is needed so local government units can monitor the arrival of people in their areas, he added.
Maria Cecilia Natividad, Cebu Pacific director for corporate affairs, in a letter to the governor said since the downgrading of the National Capital Region to Alert Level 2, CEB continues to see its load factors increasing as travel demand continues to rise.
“With the opening of the country’s borders to foreign tourists, together with the start of the national election campaign period and the upcoming opening of local elections in March, CEB anticipates that the demand for travel will only rise further in the weeks ahead,” she said.
CEB hopes to add more flights gradually to ensure that it can keep up with the demand, she said.
CEB currently flies two Manila-Bacolod-Manila flights a day and one Cebu-Bacolod-Cebu flight a week.
Starting March 1 CEB proposes to add two more Manila-Bacolod-Manila flights and to convert its Manila-Bacolod cargo flight into a commercial flight, Natividad said.
CEB is also looking at adding two more flights a week between Cebu and Bacolod by March 1.
CEB strongly believes that the additional flights will contribute to the economic recovery not only of Negros Occidental, but of Western Visayas, Natividad said.
“An increased supply in seats will also help ensure significantly reduced fares,” she added.*