CLARK, Pampanga -- Jetstar Asia Airways on Tuesday started its direct Clark-Singapore flight at Clark International Airport, broadening the low-fares options for more than 24 million residents from the Clark Airport’s catchment population who are currently underserved.
Jetstar Asia Airways' inaugural flight from Singapore was welcomed by Clark International Airport Corporation (CIAC) president and CEO Alexander Cauguiran and Jetstar Asia Airways CEO Bara Pasupathi.
The Jetstar Airbus A320 aircraft arrived with 160 passengers aboard from Singapore while 168 passengers boarded the return flight.
The Jetstar Clark-Singapore service flies every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.
The budget carrier first took to the skies in December 2004 and currently operates more than 600 weekly return flights to 25 destinations across 13 countries and territories in the Asia-Pacific region.
Pasupathi said the Clark-Singapore route is the airline’s first service from Clark, considered as the complementary gateway to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).
“Filipinos working in Singapore along with their family members will be able to travel on Asia’s best budget carrier,” Pasupathi added.
Jetstar Asia Airways was recognized as the top budget airline in a travel poll by smarttravelasia this year after surveying more than 30,000 frequent travellers from Asia, China, US and Europe.
It was also listed as one of the Top 10 safest low-cost airlines in the world in 2017 by airlineratingsdotcom.
“Low fares travel in the Philippines is booming, and these additional services give another option for direct services to Singapore, Southeast Asia and beyond,” Pasupathi said.
The airline executive also said their new route would provide more than 410,000 seats a year in total capacity between the Philippines and Singapore.
For his part, Cauguiran said that Jetstar’s business decision to mount flights at Clark is in recognition of the latter’s marketability and the increasing number of the airport's local destinations.
“The (Clark-Singapore) flights will definitely boost our operations as we are looking at more travellers who may now choose Clark to fly Jetstar,” Cauguiran added.
The new service will be operated by Jetstar Asia’s 180-seat Airbus A320.
“Adding more than 56,000 extra seats in a year will be a step towards supporting the Philippine government’s agenda to ease congestion at NAIA,” Pasupathi said.
Clark airport’s catchment population consists of Regions I (Ilocos) at 5 million; Region 2 (Cagayan Valley) at 3.4 million; Region 3 (Central Luzon) at 11.2 million; the Cordillera Administrative Region at 1.7 million; and the CAMANAVA area (Caloocan, Malabon, Navotas, Valenzuela) with 2.8 million, totaling more than 24 million potential passengers.
Clark Airport's passenger traffic is projected to reach 1.5 million by end of 2017. (PNA)
