BAGUIO CITY – The maiden flight of Philippine Airlines’ (PAL) Baguio City-Cebu City-Baguio City route landed here safely on Friday, Dec. 16.
The PAL Express flight with 68 passengers and four crew lasted less than two hours.
Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama and Department of Tourism Undersecretary Elaine Bathan flew in the inaugural flight that left the Mactan-Cebu International Airport at 8:50 a.m. and landed in Baguio at 10:29 a.m.
The return flight with 56 passengers, including Rama, left at 11:10 a.m. and arrived in Cebu City at past 1 p.m.
Rama said the flight was very smooth and was able to drink tea with Bathan during the trip. He invited the people of Cordillera to join the 2023 Sinulog festival on Jan. 15.
Department of Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista said Cordillera will benefit from the return of Cebu-Baguio flights.
"Commercial flights will catalyze the region's economic rebound. Air travel will serve as a barometer of economic growth," Bautista said in a message delivered by Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) Director General Manuel Antonio Tamayo.
Capt. Stanley Ng, PAL chief operations officer, who was among the passengers from Cebu City, said the flight is historic in the airline industry for being the first direct commercial for the route. "This marks the reopening of the Loakan Airport as part of their quest to return to Baguio City after several years," Ng said.
PAL’s last flight here was in 1996 with the jet-powered Airbus 300 at the height of the resurgence of tourism and commerce in this city after the 1990 earthquake.
Cebu-Baguio flights using a Q400 Bombardier are four times a week, on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays.