Teodie Gutigulao, a 36-year-old second assistant engineer on a cargo ship, left home when his wife Beverly was pregnant with their first child. That’s why when his nine-month contract ended in April, he was excited to finally come home.
But as fate would have it, he, along with other Filipino seafarers, had to wait for another five months at sea before they could see their loved ones again.
On September 8, Gutigulao was among a group of 80 Pinoys who were flown back to the country on a special chartered flight by AirAsia Philippines in partnership with Regent Travel Corporation.
“When we found out that our flight back to the Philippines was being arranged, I felt excited,” shared the Buhangin, Davao City native.
The special chartered flight, AirAsia said, was organized in close coordination with the Local Manning Agencies, Philippine Embassy-New Delhi under the leadership of H.E. Amb. Ramon Bagatsing Jr., DFA Manila, and Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines.
“The mere sight of the aircraft gave us hope. Soon we will be able to reunite with our families, whom we miss so much,” said Gutigulao, adding, “For this, we thank our agency, the government authorities of India and the Philippines, and AirAsia for flying us back home safely.”
They were part of the fourth batch of overseas Filipino workers flown by AirAsia from India to the Philippines. In July, it successfully marked its longest 14-hour flight from Gujarat, India to Manila with 125 repatriated OFWs onboard.
To date, the low-cost airline has mounted 644 chartered repatriation and sweeper flights, bringing home nearly 50,000 OFWs.