THE Philippines recently entered into an air agreement with Sri Lanka that will allow direct flights to and from both countries.
Under the deal, flights to and from the Philippines and Sri Lankan capital Colombo will be increased to four from two a week.
Both countries have agreed to delete all restrictions on the number of flights to points outside Manila.
Sri Lanka was also granted fifth-freedom rights from points outside Manila to Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, and Jakarta.
Recently, the Philippines entered into a similar agreement with Malaysia with the exception of flights between the two capitals, Manila and Kuala Lumpur.
Under the revised deal, airlines from the Philippines and Malaysia will be able to offer flights from any two points outside of the capital.
The new agreement will also make more capacity available between Manila and Kuala Lumpur, increasing the seat threshold from 2,300 per week to 2,520 per week.
Last year the Philippine government completed bilateral air talks with China, Singapore, Qatar, and South Korea.
By 2016, the Philippines hopes to earn tourism revenues of $4.6 billion equivalent to 6.35% of gross domestic product. Opening up the country’s skies is seen as one way to reach that goal.
The Philippine government has been aggressively pushing the open skies policy despite strong opposition from local airlines questioning the lack of reciprocity in air agreements.
