AirAsia Philippines is seeking additional airport slots to revive more flights to the Visayas and Mindanao.
“Additional slots will allow AirAsia to flourish in Visayas and Mindanao especially since we also plan to grow our domestic market by 20 percent in 2024,” said AirAsia country head for communications and public affairs Steve Dailiesn.
An airport slot is a permit issued by airport administration to airlines to utilize the takeoff and landing facilities at an airport.
“Additional slots will also allow AirAsia to revive flights to Zamboanga, Dumaguete, General Santos City, and expand frequency in Cagayan De Oro which is also a gateway to Northern Mindanao,” Dailisan said.
“This, in turn, will give AirAsia the upper hand to continue to provide the best value airfares and best travel deals as we continue to democratize air travel for everyone,” he said.
AirAsia Philippines’ statement came after Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri called on the government to boost connectivity to Visayas and Mindanao through the provision of more slots to local carriers.
Zubiri said during the 2024 Department of Transportation’s budget hearing the equal distribution of unutilized slots should be given to airlines that could operate now to provide more flights for Filipinos.
He mentioned AirAsia Philippines which is boosting its fleet through the backing of Capital A. “AirAsia is buying more planes and their problem is that they cannot use the planes because they have no slots. I’m just lobbying for our passengers because we need more flights, particularly Cagayan De Oro, Cebu, and other destinations in the Philippines,” he said.
Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista said the unutilized slots as a result of the reduction of flights during the pandemic were given to other airlines that were willing to operate during that time.
He said, however, the DOTr would evaluate the availability of slots with the Manila International Airport Authority and the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines and “give available slots to AirAsia”.
AirAsia Philippines flies 312 times weekly to 14 local destinations with an average load factor of 91 percent per flight.