The Davao-Jinjiang and Davao-Hong Kong direct flights will resume this month, according to City Tourism Operations Office (CTOO) Officer-in-Charge Jennifer Romero.
On October 8, Royal Air will start carrying Davao-Hong Kong flights and vice versa, while Xiamen Air will resume offering the Davao-Jinjiang direct flight starting October 29.
Romero, in interview with the City Information Office on Monday, bared both air routes will be scheduled twice a week with the Davao-Hong Kong flight set on Thursday and Sunday and the Davao-Jinjiang on Wednesday and Sunday.
The revival of direct flights to Hong Kong and Jinjiang, Romero said, bodes well for the tourism sector in the city to recover the rate of tourist arrivals lost during the pandemic.
The CTOO, she added, is finding ways to make operations of the flight routes more sustainable by coordinating with local tour operators to sell flight or tour packages to local passengers going to China.
“Kung naa’y mupadulong from China to Davao, hopefully we can also get local travellers to go to China as well para mag-compliment siya and ang atoang flight will be sustainable (If there are those coming from China to Davao, hopefully we can also get local travellers to go to China as well to compliment and our flight will be sustainable),” Romero said.
Aside from direct flights to Hong Kong and Jinjiang, the Davao-Singapore direct flight, which was resumed October last year, will also continue under Scoot as parent company Singapore Airlines will end operations of the same flight on October 31.
A fourth international direct flight, the Davao-Doha carried by Qatar Airways, also resumed early this year.
“We are working for more. In fact, we are collaborating with the Department of Tourism XI. Naa ta’y ginahulat na Air Connectivity Council. Ang thrust ana na council is to really push and promote and help out para we’ll be able to invite more players na mga airline companies na magahtag og mga dugang na mga flights sa atoa diri sa Davao City (We are working for more. In fact, we are collaborating with the Department of Tourism XI. We have the awaited Air Connectivity Council. The thrust of the council is to really push and promote and help out so that we’ll be able to invite more players, airline companies, to offer more flights to us here in Davao City),” Romero bared.
The CTOO aims to have the executive ordinance establishing the Air Connectivity Council before the year ends.
“That is our target para pagka-next year implemented na siya and we can then invite other airline companies pa to have a direct flight dinhi sa siyudad (That is our target for when it is implemented next year then we can invite other airline companies to have a direct flight here in the city),” she added. CIO
