Emirates Begins Clark-Dubai Flights
Emirates has launched its new daily direct service between Dubai and Clark International Airport on October 1. This is currently the only long-haul flight to be operated from a gateway other than Ninoy Aquino International Airport signifying the first step in what the country hopes will eventually be a dual-airport system.
The inaugural flight from Dubai to Clark is expected to land at Clark International Airport at 4:30pm on October 1 with an estimated 428 passengers on board. The return flight will depart Clark at 6:30pm. The new flight is expected to help the Philippines attract more tourists from Europe and the Middle East which will ultimately boost the government's chances of achieving its goal of 10 million foreign tourist arrivals by 2016. Overseas Filipino workers can also now enjoy a second option for travel to the Middle East that may even become a cheaper alternative to travelling out of Manila with incentives like the Emirates Companion Fares Promo.
"The Clark route will serve as an exit point for the millions of Filipinos working in the Middle East, which has the most number of temporary overseas Filipinos at 2.7 million, with 1.5 million in Saudi Arabia, and 680,000 in the United Arab Emirates," said Baroa.
Meanwhile, Clark International Airport continues the expansion of its passenger terminal in order to accommodate the new long-haul flights from the Middle East. The P360-million passenger terminal is expected to accommodate up to five million passengers per year once complete. "The expansion of the passenger terminal is to accommodate the coming of the long-haul flights from the Middle East with the wide-body planes of Emirates and Qatar," said Victor Luciano, President & CEO of Clark Airport. "Clark is being readied for the coming of more of these long-haul flights." It remains unclear whether Etihad Airways will be joining their Middle Eastern counterparts at Clark any time soon.
Emirates has been serving Manila since 1990. It was operating three daily non-stop flights between Manila and Dubai until the addition of the new route out of Clark. Competition between the Philippines and Dubai is about to intensify as Cebu Pacific launches its first ever budget long-haul route between Manila and Dubai on October 7. PAL Express will be joining the competition on November 1. Emirates anticipates that the volume of passengers from the Philippines is expected to reach at least one million in 2013. The Civil Aeronautics Board reported that Emirates flew 438,843 passengers between the Philippines and Dubai in the first six months of 2013.
Emirates was recently awarded the title of the 'World's Best Airline' at the 2013 Skytrax World Airline Awards. It flies to 134 destinations in 77 countries across 6 continents with its fleet of 192 aircraft. That fleet is expected to rise to 250 by 2020. Emirates is known for its popular in-flight amenities including Wi-Fi connectivity and digital in-seat widescreens. Philippine Airlines ranked 90th at the 2013 awards.
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| Copyright Photo: Angelo Agcamaran/PPSG |
According to Gigie Baroa, Philippine Country Manager for Emirates, the new service will not just be a benefit to tourists but to overseas Filipino workers as well. "This daily non-stop service from Dubai to Clark will benefit thousands of overseas Filipino workers, especially those based in Northern Luzon," said Baroa. "A two-class Boeing 777-300ER will operate on the new route. The two-class configuration variant allows the airline to add more seats to the aircraft in the economy and business classes while the aircraft's first class will be scrapped."
With the addition of the Clark route, Emirates now operates four daily scheduled flights between Dubai and the Philippines. Congestion at Ninoy Aquino International Airport forced Emirates to choose Clark for its fourth daily flight. Emirates is also now the only international full service carrier operating a long-haul flight from Clark. But that position won't be held for long. Qatar Airways will be competing with Emirates with its own daily direct service from Clark International Airport to Doha scheduled to begin later this month on October 28 utilizing an Airbus A330-300 aircraft.
With the addition of the Clark route, Emirates now operates four daily scheduled flights between Dubai and the Philippines. Congestion at Ninoy Aquino International Airport forced Emirates to choose Clark for its fourth daily flight. Emirates is also now the only international full service carrier operating a long-haul flight from Clark. But that position won't be held for long. Qatar Airways will be competing with Emirates with its own daily direct service from Clark International Airport to Doha scheduled to begin later this month on October 28 utilizing an Airbus A330-300 aircraft.
The inaugural flight from Dubai to Clark is expected to land at Clark International Airport at 4:30pm on October 1 with an estimated 428 passengers on board. The return flight will depart Clark at 6:30pm. The new flight is expected to help the Philippines attract more tourists from Europe and the Middle East which will ultimately boost the government's chances of achieving its goal of 10 million foreign tourist arrivals by 2016. Overseas Filipino workers can also now enjoy a second option for travel to the Middle East that may even become a cheaper alternative to travelling out of Manila with incentives like the Emirates Companion Fares Promo.
"The Clark route will serve as an exit point for the millions of Filipinos working in the Middle East, which has the most number of temporary overseas Filipinos at 2.7 million, with 1.5 million in Saudi Arabia, and 680,000 in the United Arab Emirates," said Baroa.
Meanwhile, Clark International Airport continues the expansion of its passenger terminal in order to accommodate the new long-haul flights from the Middle East. The P360-million passenger terminal is expected to accommodate up to five million passengers per year once complete. "The expansion of the passenger terminal is to accommodate the coming of the long-haul flights from the Middle East with the wide-body planes of Emirates and Qatar," said Victor Luciano, President & CEO of Clark Airport. "Clark is being readied for the coming of more of these long-haul flights." It remains unclear whether Etihad Airways will be joining their Middle Eastern counterparts at Clark any time soon.
Emirates has been serving Manila since 1990. It was operating three daily non-stop flights between Manila and Dubai until the addition of the new route out of Clark. Competition between the Philippines and Dubai is about to intensify as Cebu Pacific launches its first ever budget long-haul route between Manila and Dubai on October 7. PAL Express will be joining the competition on November 1. Emirates anticipates that the volume of passengers from the Philippines is expected to reach at least one million in 2013. The Civil Aeronautics Board reported that Emirates flew 438,843 passengers between the Philippines and Dubai in the first six months of 2013.
Emirates was recently awarded the title of the 'World's Best Airline' at the 2013 Skytrax World Airline Awards. It flies to 134 destinations in 77 countries across 6 continents with its fleet of 192 aircraft. That fleet is expected to rise to 250 by 2020. Emirates is known for its popular in-flight amenities including Wi-Fi connectivity and digital in-seat widescreens. Philippine Airlines ranked 90th at the 2013 awards.
The route is actually being served by a tri-class Boeing 777-200LR.
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