Tourism task force pursues talks to open more Cebu-direct flights

• Source: http://www.sunstar.com.ph/cebu/business/2015/08/16/tourism-task-force-pursues-talks-open-more-cebu-direct-flights-425042
• Sunday, August 16, 2015

By Katlene O. Cacho

THE Tourism Task Force initiated by the GMR-Megawide Cebu Airport Corp. (GMCAC) is trying to woo more foreign airlines in countries with large Filipino populations to open direct flights to Cebu.

GMCAC Chief Executive Advisor Andrew Harrison, during his talk before the Rotary Club of Cebu District 3860, said the team is working on direct connections between Cebu and the United States, Middle East, Europe and Australia.

Developments so far include the Philippine Airlines (PAL) direct flight between Cebu and Los Angeles, thrice weekly, which will begin on March 15 next year. It will use the 254-seater bi-class Airbus A340 with 36 lie-flat seats in business class and 218 seats in regular economy.

The Tourism Task Force, according to Harrison, is also 70 percent on its way to getting the confirmation of airlines flying to the Middle East to revive or open flights to Cebu. He said that by October, the team would likely know already if there would be an additional daily service to the Middle East which is a home to many overseas Filipino workers.

The firm is in talks with Qatar Airways and Emirates Airlines.

Harrison said they are also in talks with Turkish Airlines to mount a non-stop service between Cebu and UK, hopefully by the end of this year. He noted the firm initially picked Turkish Airlines because of its strong network connectivity to diverse destinations.

The team is also keen on getting non-stop flights between Cebu and Australia. Although carriers here such as PAL and Cebu Pacific admitted it’s quite difficult to add more flights due to aircraft availability, the team has set up meetings with the Australian tourism stakeholders in November this year.

Showing Cebu

According to Harrison, they will be inviting at least 40 representatives from the travel and tours sector in Australia to visit and experience Cebu and the Philippines.

“We will show them what is best in our country and in Cebu,” said Harisson, adding that there are close to 300,000 Filipinos in Australia, making it a promising market for the airlines.

“Our strategy here is to market Cebu as a destination with greater connectivity,” Harrison. “We’ve created the Tourism Task Force to engage all stakeholders to jointly market Cebu and showcase its rich culture and tourism.”

Harrison also added that the increased connectivity to Cebu would not only bring in more tourists but is also good for the export and import industries and will pave the way for more business engagement.