The Department of Tourism (DOT) has urged United Airlines to explore the viability of establishing direct routes to the Philippines’ secondary gateways, including the Clark International Airport, Mactan Cebu International Airport and the Davao International Airport.
This after US carrier had its inaugural direct flight from San Francisco to Manila on November 3.
DOT Secretary Christina Frasco in her meeting with United Airlines president Janet Lamkin and vice president for International Regulatory and Policy Government Affairs Steve Morrissey expressed hope the added route from one of the most well-respected brands in aviation would be able to not only recover the number of visitors from the US but exceed it in leaps and bounds.
The US is among the Philippines’ largest source markets.
In 2022, the US ranked first as the top source market for the Philippines, with 505,089 arrivals from February to December 2022 or 19.03 percent percent of the country’s total international arrivals by nationality for the said period.
The DOT’s latest report showed as of November 17, the US ranked as the top two source market for the Philippines next to South Korea, with 814,062 arrivals or 17.43 percent of the country’s total international arrivals by nationality.
