By Ruth Abbey Gita-Carlos | Philippine News Agency
The Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) is “very much” ready for the opening of direct Manila-Paris flights on Dec. 8, Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista said Tuesday.
This was after Air France KML general manager for Southeast Asia and Oceania Femke Kroese announced in a Palace press briefing that the international carrier would begin offering non-stop Manila-Paris flights on December 8.
Bautista, who also joined the press conference with Palace reporters, assured the public of NAIA’s readiness for the possible influx of Air France passengers.
“NAIA is always ready to accept these passengers. Of course, you know that NAIA is a very congested airport, and this is the reason why we are privatizing it and making some more improvements. But for these particular flights, NAIA is very much prepared,” he said.
“NAIA will work closely with the officials of Air France—KLM, their ground handlers, their caterers so that Air France will have smooth operations here in the country. So, no worries about getting some issues or problems for the passengers of these non-stop flights from Paris to Manila,” Bautista added.
Kroese said Air France would operate three days a week (Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday), adding that the direct flight to Paris would take around 14 hours.
Air France’s Airbus 350-900 may accommodate 324 passengers, Kroese said.
She said the economy return fares start from US$1,258 and noted that promotional fares would be launched “within the next periods.”
“For this, I don’t have the exact fares yet, just stay tuned. We’re really launching today the system and as mentioned, we’ve been really working very much on getting all the necessary approvals,” Kroese said.
French Ambassador to the Philippines Marie Fontanel said the launch of direct flights between Manila and Paris was scheduled in December as a “a real Christmas present, opening the line for the first weekend of the most important ‘ber’ month.
Fontanel stressed that after a 20-year absence, Air France would reopen an office in the Philippines.
“It testifies also, I think, to Air France’s confidence in the Philippines market at the time when flights between Europe and the Philippines are set to increase by more than four percent a year between now and 2042,” she said.
“The direct non-stop service between the Philippines and France will probably most likely boost tourism exchanges between our two countries and more generally with the European Union,” Fontanel added.
Fontanel said the French Embassy in Manila is working to increase the number of visas granted to Filipinos.
In 2023, France issued around 37,000 visas to Filipinos.
“Probably there will be an increase, so we are currently starting to work on this. We have been working a lot on considering the decision to reopen, and now, of course, the work continues in another sense. We have to make this direct flight a success, and the capacity to issue more visas will be the center of our work,” Fontanel said.
