Two additional domestic routes to the southern Philippines are set to be launched by Philippine Airlines at Clark International Airport (CRK), an official of the Clark International Airport Corporation (CIAC) announced on Thursday, a development seen to further strengthen operations at the premier airport north of Manila.
CIAC President and CEO Alexander Cauguiran said that the nation’s flag carrier will launch in formal ceremonies the CRK-Cebu-CRK flights on January 30 and the CRK-Davao-CRK routes on February 1.
PAL will fly to Cebu four times weekly and thrice in a week to Davao.
“Travelers and tourists from the Northern and Central Luzon who wish to travel to Cebu and Davao will surely choose Clark (airport) because of its proximity, convenience and world-class facilities,” Cauiguiran said, adding that Clark Airport is now bustling with new flights this year as CIAC is making a strong foothold for its operations in the north of the Philippines.
Clark-Cebu PAL flight PR 837 will depart at Clark Airport at 7 a.m. beginning January 30 and every Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday, thereafter. Davao PAL flight PR 831, on the other hand, will depart at 10:50 a.m. starting February 1, 2017 and regularly on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. PAL will use Airbus321 with a passenger capacity of 199 in their domestic operations at Clark Airport.
“Travelers from the north and the peripheral provinces near Clark may now enjoy flights going to the Queen City of the South (Cebu) or bask in the sun at Davao’s pristine beaches,” Cauguiran said.
The Duterte administration laid several projects under the “Build, Build, Build” infrastructure spending program of the government that include Department of Transportation (DOTr) Secretary Arthur P. Tugade’s initiatives to develop the Clark International Airport, particularly the transfer of flights from the crowded Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) as part of efforts to decongest Metro Manila, and the development of a new Passenger Terminal to accommodate a yearly capacity of eight million passengers.
On December 16, 2017, PAL commenced its daily flights to the world-famous Boracay Island via the CRK-Caticlan-CRK while daily international flights to Incheon in South Korea began last January 1. Based on the PAL news advisory website, the flag carrier is also set to launch the CRK-Puerto Princesa-CRK flights on March 26 and at least 122 flight operations at the “Airport of the North.”
The CIAC last week conducted the CRK North Philippines Roadshow 2017 in Baguio City which was attended by more than 140 travel, tourism and local officials and businessmen that showcased the on-going flight services and world-class facilities at Clark Airport.