Four-star carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) on Friday said that, in anticipation of any government decision to close or cut back tourism activities on Boracay Island for a temporary period, the carrier will be ready to make the appropriate adjustments to schedules of flights to and from Caticlan (Boracay) Airport and Kalibo International Airport.
“We will be ready to assist passengers in rebooking, refunding and rerouting their flights in such a scenario,” PAL said in a statement.
“Our adjustments will depend on the scope and duration of the Boracay closure, and we will also take into account the need to retain some flights to serve the residents and businesses in Kalibo and the rest of Aklan province.”
A BusinessMirror special report said local carriers will be incurring massive losses from the planned closure of Boracay Island, even as they continue to wait for the final word from the government when the closure will start and for how long.
Sources in the aviation sector have raised some rough estimates on the industry losses based on a two-month closure—from April 26 to June 26—after the airline representatives met with Tourism Secretary Wanda Corazon T. Teo on March 13.
Paolo Misa, marketing head for Air Juan, which operates scheduled and charter flights between Manila and Boracay, and Busuanga and Caticlan, told the BusinessMirror they “will take a big hit,” adding that the Boracay/Caticlan routes account for about 15 percent of the airline’s business.
The Manila-Boracay nine-seater seaplanes cost about $4,000 (P208,000) to charter, one way. With summer being the peak travel season, he added, the carrier usually has about one chartered flight a week to Boracay. For a two-month closure alone, that will cost the airline at least P1.66 million, based on the fare quoted above. Misa admitted that the impact on the airline’s finances will be higher if carriers are made to absorb cancellation or rebooking fees.
The Department of Tourism (DOT) is pushing the closure of Boracay Island in Aklan because of the worsening sewage conditions there, aside from uncontrolled growth by developers.
The government has initiated a massive cleanup in Boracay this month after President Duterte cited the island’s sewage problems, calling it a “cesspool,” and threatened to shut the world-famous beach resort down.
Reports said that some 850 establishments have been served show-cause orders by an interagency council for easement violations and not connecting to the sewerage treatment plant.
The DOT also temporarily ceased the processing of new and expiring accreditation certificates to establishments in Boracay that are not complying with environmental laws.
PAL said their adjustments will depend on the scope and duration of the Boracay closure, and “we will also take into account the need to retain some flights to serve the residents and businesses in Kalibo and the rest of the Aklan province.”
PAL Spokesman Cielo Villaluna said the airline also intends to help minimize any impact on tourism, its passengers and the airline operations by redirecting flights to other routes where PAL can continue to promote domestic and international tourist travel for the Philippines during the temporary closure period.
“PAL will make the necessary public advisories to inform and update the flying public, for our passengers and travel partners. We will continue to closely monitor the situation, pending any final government announcements, and coordinate with the DOT and the other concerned government agencies in support of the efforts to rehabilitate Boracay Island,” she added.