LEGACY carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) is studying the possibility of mounting flights from Zamboanga Airport to Asean nations, depending on the restrictions imposed by each country.
PAL SVP Harry Inoferio said his group is keen on operating international flights out of Zamboanga to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; Jakarta, Indonesia; Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam; and Bangkok, Thailand.
“It will all depend on the preparation for the protocols and requirements by each country. There are a lot of moving parts that we need to fix—we need the go-signal of government authorities. It will depend on their timeline. As long as there is demand for a route, we will be willing to consider that,” he said.
Inoferio was responding to the remarks of Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade for the flag carrier to mount regional flights out of the newly-upgraded Zamboanga Airport.
“Zamboanga International Airport is ready for international operations. It has long been prepared for this. The airport can start international operations through the Zamboanga-Manila-Kota Kinabalu route. But we have to wait for our Malaysian counterpart for the Zamboanga-Kota Kinabalu flight,” Tugade said.
Tugade assured that apart from the completed development projects, more development projects will be undertaken by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (Caap) to further improve and accommodate international flights at the Zamboanga International Airport.
Tuesday saw Tugade leading the inauguration of the upgraded Zamboanga Airport.
The agency spearheaded the expansion of the passenger terminal building (PTB) of the airport from 500 passengers at any given time to 750 passengers.
The project covers the 9.20 meters x 36.00 meters expansion of the PTB at its right side and the rehabilitation of several areas at the existing terminal building. With these improvements, Zamboanga Airport’s PTB has been provided with an additional space of 691.2 square meters, making the PTB a 3,456-square meter structure.
Future development projects for the airport include the expansion of its runway, apron and taxiway, Tugade said.
The airport development is expected to help revitalize the economy of Zamboanga and its neighboring provinces.
Image courtesy of BusinessMirror file photo