Local carriers have been gearing up for the anticipated holiday influx across the country’s airports.
“In preparation for the long holidays (barangay elections and Undas), we will deploy the required manpower to ensure full manning of our customer touchpoints,” Philippine Airlines (PAL) spokesperson Cielo Villaluna told the Philippine News Agency in an interview Monday.
PAL assures fleet availability to deal with the number of flights to be served, she said.
Villaluna said PAL has been carrying out 535 weekly roundtrips via the Manila hub, and 210 domestic roundtrips per week from Cebu and other provincial cities.
The flag carrier has 358 roundtrips per week with 31 of these are from non-Manila routes.
The same frequencies will continue during the holiday break, she said.
For a smoother travel experience, Villaluna advised passengers to check-in online at least 24 hours before their flight.
They are also encouraged to arrive at the airport two and a half hours before a domestic flight, and three and a half hours before an international flight.
She also urged travelers to determine the baggage allowance of their ticket.
“For outbound international travel, know the travel requirements of your destination. For travel to the Philippines, you are required to fill up e-travel,” she added.
Also in time for the holiday influx, low-cost carrier Cebu Pacific (CEB) recently introduced the use of kiosks for non-visa travelers at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3.
Those bound for non-visa destinations would only need to scan their itinerary receipt’s barcode or enter the booking reference number on the kiosks. This has been also implemented at the Mactan-Cebu International Airport.
Passengers of the Gokongwei-led airline at NAIA Terminal 3 who might be affected by flight disruptions may simply show their boarding passes at several partner stores inside the terminal to avail of meals.
The NAIA is expecting about 1.2 million passengers to pass through the main gateway from Oct. 27 to Nov. 5.
In a statement, Manila International Airport Authority officer-in-charge Bryan Co said they target to minimize overcrowding in passenger and aircraft movement through the timely dispatch of flights. (PNA)
