DAVAO CITY – The plan to re-establish the direct air connectivity of Davao City and Manado in North Sulawesi will strengthen the city’s position as the gateway in the 10-country Association Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) Executive Director Romeo Montenegro said on Thursday.
“It's a welcome development as we endeavor to lay the ground for enabling policy environment through inter-agency collaboration to make the route both viable and sustainable,” Montenegro said.
There used to be a regular Davao-Manado flight, but this was halted in 2008 for lack of load factor.
Montenegro said the Davao-Manado air route is a “strategic link identified under the transport and connectivity cluster and its planned re-opening strengthens Davao's current positioning to be a gateway in ASEAN.”
The official believes the revival of the route would be sustained compared to when it was launched before due to the growing “cross-border economic cooperation brought about by the ASEAN integration.”
The Davao International Airport has two international flights -- Davao-Singapore by SilkAir and Cebu Pacific and Davao-Kuala Lumpur by AirAsia.
But the Davao-KL direct flights will operate only until December 2018.
On September 1, 2018, Philippine Ambassador to Indonesia Leehiong T. Wee and Indonesian Ambassador to the Philippines Sinyo Harry Sarundajang signed a written statement to promote the reestablishment of the air route and witnessed by Transportation Undersecretary for aviation Manuel Antonio L. Tamayo at the
Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia in Makati City.
Wee and Sarundajang agreed to promote the revival of the defunct route to increase trade, tourism, and investment between the two countries.
The statement said the “Air Transport Agreement” signed between Philippines and Indonesia on March 24, 1972 to enhance the mutually beneficial economic relations and people-to-people contact stemming from centuries-old ties of both nations.
A subsequent memorandum of understanding (MOU) on the expansion of air linkages between and among Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines was also signed in 2007 where Davao and Manado had been identified as designated points.
The two countries will mark the 69th anniversary of the opening of the diplomatic relations on November 24 this year. (Antonio L. Colina IV)