Ari na mi sa Capiz: AirAsia Philippines adds Roxas City to its growing domestic route network
AirAsia Philippines officially launches its 16th domestic destination — Roxas City! Above is the photo of the AirAsia maiden flight to the city upon its landing at the Roxas Airport.
The World’s Best Low cost Airline’s 16th destination presents a multitude of tourism and economic opportunities stirring strong recovery in the Panay Region.
AirAsia flies Manila-Roxas 3x weekly via NAIA Domestic Terminal 4.
Roxas, Capiz, Philippines, 16 June 2022 – AirAsia Philippines is officially bringing its brand of inclusive and attainable flying to the Seafood Capital of the Philippines, Roxas City! The successful inaugural flight on 16 June kickstarts the airline’s operations in its 16th domestic destination.
The maiden flight Z2 343, which departed from the NAIA Terminal 4 at 7:15am, arrived at the Roxas City Airport at 8:30am carrying 180 guests including AirAsia CEO Ricky Isla, airasia Super App Managing Director Ray Berja, other airline executives and members of the media.
The guests on flight Z2 343 were greeted by a cultural dance at the Arrival area. Capiz Governor Esteban Contreras, and Mayor Ronnie Dadivas represented by Roxas City Councilor Atty. Paul Ivan Baticados led the delegation who welcomed the guests along with other regional tourism and trade industry officials and partners.
Its return flight to Manila, Z2 344, departed Roxas City Airport at 9:10am with a full load, and arrived at the NAIA T4 at 10:25am. AirAsia is initially set to fly to Roxas City 3x weekly, every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Roxas City accepts local and foreign tourists with just the vaccination card as entry requirements.
AirAsia Philippines CEO Ricky Isla said, “We are happy to have successfully launched our maiden flight in Roxas. The pandemic may have pushed back the opening but it also allowed us to focus on strengthening the viability of this route. Expect AirAsia to be driving foreign and local tourists to experience the best of Capiz. We are confident that this expansion will also help in stimulating commerce and growth in other booming sectors, such as ICT and trade.”
The Seafood Capital of the Philippines attracts local and foreign tourists because of its easy access to other key cities in Western Visayas including the majestic Islas de Gigantes. Roxas City is also becoming an Information Communications Technology (ICT) hub with a number of Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) companies investing in the city.
“From food, history, culture and tourism to economic opportunities, Capiz shows huge promise in terms of growth and development in the Panay Region especially now that we are in the recovery phase. I firmly believe this strong collaboration between private, government and the people of Capiz will propel us to achieving greater heights in all of our shared goals,” Isla added.
To celebrate AirAsia’s successful launch in Roxas City, a music fest was held at the SM City Roxas grounds. Capiznons rocked with high level performance from Sponge Cola. They were also joined by homegrown music artists from Roxas City with their jaw-dropping performances.
The event culminated with a grand fireworks display, showcasing the colors of victory and triumph rising above the challenges brought by the pandemic.