Legacy carrier Philippine Airlines announced on Monday it is set to launch its first direct flight service between Zamboanga and Tawi-Tawi this coming December.
PAL spokesperson Ma. Cielo Villaluna said beginning Dec. 15, Flight PR 2485 departs Zamboanga daily at 8 a.m. and arrives in Tawi -Tawi at 9:30 a.m.; the returning flight PR 2486 leaves Tawi-Tawi daily at 10 a.m. and touches down in Zamboanga at 11:30 a.m.
The brand new flight service, according to Villaluna, came In response to public calls for air connectivity between the “City of Flowers” (Zamboanga) and the “Southernmost island province” (Tawi-Tawi).
PAL currently operates direct flights to Zamboanga from Manila and by Dec. 15, it will also start flight services from Cebu to Zamboanga.
The City of Zamboanga is a first class highly urbanized city in the Zamboanga Peninsula of the Philippines. It is the sixth most populous and third largest city by land area in the country and known as the commercial and industrial center of the Zamboanga Peninsula Region. It is an independent and chartered city, yet grouped with the province of Zamboanga del Sur.
Tawi-Tawi, on the other hand, is an island province in the Philippines located in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. It is the southernmost province of the country. To the northeast lies the province of Sulu. Tawi-Tawi also covers some islands in the Sulu Sea such as the Cagayan de Tawi-Tawi Island and the Turtle Islands, just 20 kilometers away from Sabah.
With the new services in place by Dec. 15, air travelers can conveniently connect across the Manila – Zamboanga -Tawi-Tawi and Cebu – Zamboanga – Tawi-Tawi routes.