PAL keeps PH-SKorea flights under new guidelines
Credit to Author: Lisbet K. Esmael| Date: Thu, 27 Feb 2020 16:50:10 +0000
FLAG carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) will continue flying between the Philippines and South Korea, but under new guidelines released after the government imposed a limited ban on Filipinos traveling to the East Asian country, which saw its cases of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) dramatically spike.
In a Viber message on Thursday, PAL Spokesman Cielo Villaluna said the Lucio Tan-led airline was maintaining “the same number of [Philippines-South Korea] flight frequencies for now.”
According to her, the airline may decide to “downgrade from wide to narrow-body aircraft” for its Philippine-South Korea operations.
In an advisory, Villaluna also noted the new guidelines for the said route.
For South Korea to the Philippines, Villaluna said the travel ban applied to passengers who had been to North Gyeongsang province, including Daegu, regardless of nationality and date of travel from that province.
A city in North Gyeongsang, Daegu is regarded as the center of the country’s growing number of Covid-19 cases. As of Thursday, South Korea has recorded 500 new infections and 13 people have succumbed to the disease, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
For vice versa, the ban applies to all Filipinos traveling as tourists. Filipinos studying, working or holding a permanent resident visa in South Korea are exempted, provided that they show proof of identification or documentation.
Passengers transferring through South Korea are not covered by the ban, while foreign tourists are allowed to take PAL’s Manila to South Korea flights.
PAL has 21 weekly flights between the Philippines and South Korea. Of these, 14 are between Manila and Incheon and the rest between Manila and Busan.
Canceled flight
Also on Thursday, a travel advisory from the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) said AirAsia Philippines canceled its Z2-884 flight to Incheon.
In a mobile message, AirAsia spokesman Dave de Castro said the airline’s “flights to [South Korea] continue, following, of course, what are indicated in the travel ban.”
“For now, we are reviewing our loads and coordinating with aviation authorities for more official guidelines,” he added.
“Once okay, we will issue a travel advisory with possible canceled flights.”
AirAsia flies from the Philippines to Incheon and Busan.
Meanwhile, the Bureau of Immigration at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) would allow foreigners coming from South Korea to enter the country, provided they present certification issued by Seoul that they did not come from North Gyeongsang.
They must have at least two copies of the certification: one for the airline concerned and the other for the immigration officer to be presented upon arrival at the NAIA. WITH BENJAMIN L. VERGARA