KALIBO, Aklan – For the first time in 27 months, a regional flight took off from Incheon International Airport in South Korea and headed to Kalibo, Aklan.
Air Seoul made history as the first international flight that landed on the Kalibo International Airport. Onboard were 177 tourists bound for Boracay Island.
RS 531 Air Seoul left Incheon, South Korea for a four-hour flight to Kalibo. The plane with tourists received a water cannon salute after it touched down at 12:35 a.m. on June 17.
At the passenger terminal building, officials of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines, Bureau of Customs, Bureau of Immigration, and Aviation Security Group welcomed the foreigners from South Korea.
The low-cost South Korean airline will operate four times weekly – Monday, Thursday, Friday, and Sunday – via Incheon International Airport.
T’Way Air has also announced resumption of flights to Kalibo starting June 22.
Four other airline companies are also scheduled to resume services to the Kalibo International Airport by July.
International flights to Kalibo from neighboring regions had been off limits since the start of the pandemic in March 2020.
In February this year, the government eased travel restrictions as part of efforts to reopen airports for regional flights.
Prior to the pandemic, Kalibo International Airport connected to destinations in mainland China, Taipei Taiwan, South Korea, Singapore and Macau.
In 2020, the airport handled 30 regional flights from neighboring countries./PN
