[February 19, 2007] Cebu Pacific upbeat on Manila-Jakarta service Tweet (The Jakarta Post Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge) from THE JAKARTA POST -- FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2007 -- PAGE 14 Philippine budget carrier Cebu Pacific is upbeat that the airline's newly launched Manila-Jakarta service will become popular among travellers between the two cities "Since we are the only carrier that provides direct flights between the two countries' capitals, we are optimistic we will be able to achieve an average 80 percent load factor this year," Cebu Pacific Airlines country manager Eduardo C. Novillas told reporters Thursday He said that the airline would not only target the growing Philippine community in Indonesia, but also tourists and businesspeople Cebu Pacific offers a fare of only Rp 1,770,400 (US$194) net for a round trip between Jakarta and Manila The first Cebu Pacific plane flying from Manila to Soekarno-Hatta Airport touched down in Jakarta late on Wednesday evening The new route is served every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday Novillas said the low-cost carrier, a subsidiary of JG Summit Holdings, operates a fleet of 13 new Airbus aircraft, with the average aircraft age being less than one year Cebu Pacific serves 20 domestic and six regional destinations -- Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea, Thailand and Jakarta "This year, we plan to expand our regional destinations to three more cities, Taipei, Macao and Shanghai," said Novillas He added that the company was also considering opening a Manado-Tabao route, which would take less than an hour's flying time Novillas said that in 2006, the carrier had a 40.9 percent share of the domestic Philippine market. Last year, it flew a total of 3.4 million passengers, and expected the figure to increase this year to 5 million Cebu Pacific faces competition on its new route from the Philippine flag-carrier, Philippines Airlines, which serves Jakarta through Singapore Copyright 2007 The Jakarta Post Copyright 2007 The Jakarta Post. Source: Financial Times Information Limited - Asia Intelligence Wire. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]