Airline, shipping operations in CV post positive growth

CEBU, Philippines - Airline and shipping operations in Central Visayas posted a good growth performance in 2010, despite the volatile fuel prices, as the tourism market continued to move in upswing level.

   A report from the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA-7) revealed that the transportation sector in the region turned in a positive performance in 2010 registered higher levels of airline and shipping traffic, passenger movement and cargo deliveries.

The aviation industry on the other hand, sustained its growth momentum while the shipping industry, which had been lethargic since 2008, started to recover last year.

Major airports in the region recorded a 4.3 percent increase in the number of domestic and international flights and a 37.6 per cent increase in general aviation flights.

Most domestic airlines, especially the relatively new air line company Zest Air , increased their f light frequencies for existing domestic routes.

Zest Air, which has one of the fastest growing operations in the region, added f lights to its Manila and Davao routes. Cebu Pacific also increased the f requency of its Cebu-Manila route.

Meanwhile, Air Philippines, which assumed the flights of PAL Express, experienced steady growth in its flight frequencies particularly in the first semester of 2010.

Cebu Pacific added flights for Hongkong in the first semester and f lights for Singapore in the second semester.

With the increase in the number of f l ights, ai r lines operating in the region also reported an increase in the number of both domestic and international passengers.

The region realized a double-digit increase in the number of international passengers dur ing the year. Special events like the Chinese New Year and the Sinulog festival spur red international tourism in the first semester .

Aggressive promotions by domestic carriers such as the Cebu Pacific Air line also contributed to the increase in international passenger traffic especially in the second semester .

The month of August, which is considered the peak month for international traffic, saw a 37.0 per cent increase in international passenger movement. Most of the passengers were Koreans.

For cargo deliveries, both domestic and international cargo traf fic were on an uptrend despite the cessation of the operations of the Paci f ic East Asia Cargo (PEAC) in the first semester of 2010. Other domestic carriers had to make up for the freight services lost as a result of the PEAC closure.

Meanwhile, leading international cargo carriers experienced double-digit increases in their cargo deliveries in 2010.

In the second quarter alone, the cargo volume of FedEx increased by 80 percent. In the second semester, FedEx; Cebu Pacific; Cathay Pacific; Qatar Air lines; and PAL were the largest shareholders of international cargo traffic.

Products from the economic zones comprised the bulk of international cargo passing through the region's airpor ts in 2010.

The number of shipcalls, passengers and cargo traffic were higher in 2010 compared to that in 2009. – (FREEMAN)