Europe-PH News

DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 9 January) – The country aims to reestablish air connectivity from Davao City to Manado and Kuala Lumpur to strengthen air linkages among members of the Brunei Darussalam–Indonesia–Malaysia–Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area or BIMP-EAGA.

During the “Business Forum” at NCCC on Friday, Romeo Castañaga, regional director of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI)-Davao, said the direction of the country is to revive the air routes, and that members of the working group on air connectivity are in talks with airline companies to reopen the international links.

Castañaga, also the Philippine head of BIMP-EAGA’s Trade and Investment Promotion Cluster, said Cebu Pacific (CebPac) and Philippine Airlines have expressed interest in operating the routes from the Philippines side, but they “have yet to finalize their decision.”

He said they have not heard from their Indonesian counterparts regarding the interest of the Garuda Group to service the routes.

Malaysia’s budget airline AirAsia ceased its four-times-weekly Davao-Kuala Lumpur-Davao direct flights on August 20, 2018, after eight months of operation due to low passenger load.

Meanwhile, Garuda Indonesia’s twice-weekly Davao-Manado-Davao flights were suspended in March 2020, along with other domestic and international flights, following the Covid-19 pandemic.

Castañaga said the Davao-Manado-Davao performed well before the suspension, with several trips going to and from Davao fully booked.

Established in 1994, BIMP-EAGA is a 31-year-old sub-regional economic cooperation initiative in Southeast Asia designed to spur economic development. According to the BIMP-EAGA website, this initiative intends to boost growth in trade, investments, and tourism through new intra-region shipping routes and air links, as well as power interconnection projects.

He said that instead of direct international flights, the working group is exploring a triangulated route where flights from Davao to Manado, Indonesia, and Davao to Kuala Lumpur, will include stopovers in domestic destinations such as Siargao, Cebu, or other Philippine destinations to sustain passenger load.

“We hope some airlines will pick up some of these connectivity destinations that we have,” he said.

He said the city government of Davao’s special committee on air connectivity is looking at “where Davao can be connected directly, not necessarily within BIMP-EAGA, even outside.”

At present, direct international passenger flights flying from Davao include CebPac’s Bangkok-Don Mueang and Hong Kong, Qatar Airways’ Doha, and Scoot’s Singapore.

For international cargo flights from Davao, these are JD Airlines’ Shenzhen, MJets Air’s Macau, and Royal Air Philippines’ Nanning.

Castañaga recognized the need to strengthen Davao’s position as a destination for Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions (MICE) to attract more visitors and prospective investors.

“We have to increase engagements, even events or hosting, like MICE, which can draw participation of tourists. Davao has become a MICE destination, which will draw tourists as well as prospective investors. It will just take one visit to Davao, and we will be able to draw interest,” he said. (Antonio L. Colina IV/MindaNews)