Air Asia Philippines will start adding new routes to link the Philippines with southern Taiwan by August. The low-cost carrier said in a statement it will open flights from Clark and Cebu to Kaohsiung, Taiwan by Aug. 1, making it the first local airline to offer direct flights between the cities.
“The Philippines continues to be one of the top holiday destinations for Taiwanese. As the only Philippine airline to connect Cebu and Clark directly to Kaohsiung, we are pleased to be able to contribute to Philippine tourism and bring Cebuanos and Kapampangans closer to southern Taiwan as well,” AirAsia Philippines President and Chief Executive Officer Dexter M. Comendador was quoted as saying.
AirAsia will have thrice weekly flights for both the Clark-Kaohsiung route and the Cebu-Kaohsiung, and thrice weekly returning flights to the same local hubs, all available every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.
The carrier said Kaohsiung will be the 10th international destination it is opening in 2019, boosting its growing flight network from Cebu and Clark.
Excluding Kaohsiung, AirAsia flies from Cebu to 12 domestic and international destinations, namely: Manila, Clark, Davao, Cagayan De Oro, Puerto Princesa, Caticlan, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Seoul, Shenzhen, Macau and Taipei.
From Clark, it also flies to nine domestic and international destinations, namely: Cagayan de Oro, Tacloban, Puerto Princesa, Cebu, Davao, Iloilo, Caticlan, Seoul and Taipei.
Its operator Philippines AirAsia, Inc. reported a 12% growth in profit after tax to P424.5 million during the first quarter, driven by a 27% increase in revenues at P6.68 billion.
The carrier saw a 23% jump in passengers during the January to March period at 1.97 million, and its load factor inch up to 91% from 87% last year.
Philippines AirAsia will be adding three new aircraft this year as part of a group-wide fleet expansion program that aims to grow its fleet to 535 aircraft by 2028 across the six countries where AirAsia Group Berhad operates.