DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 23 August) – Indonesian airline TransNusa Aviation Group has expressed interest to operate direct flights between this city and Manado, Indonesia, in the hopes of strengthening trade, investment, and tourism opportunities between Mindanao and North Sulawesi, a Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) official said.
MinDA Assistant Secretary Romeo Montenegro told MindaNews that he met Dato Bernard Francis, the airline’s chief executive officer, at the TransNusa office in Jakarta when he attended the Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines-East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) Special Senior Officials Meeting with the Asian Development Bank last August 20.
“The meeting with TransNusa was also a pitch for Mindanao, (where we) presented trade, investment and tourism opportunities, particularly highlighting Davao,” he said.
He said that MinDA presented the “passenger statistics” of the previous flights between the two cities and incentives for airlines under the BIMP-EAGA, particularly the extended travel tax exemption.
BIMP-EAGA is a 30-year-old sub-regional economic cooperation initiative in East Asia designed to spur economic development in the lagging sub-economies of the member countries.
Montenegro said the airline will review the data before it will make a decision but noted that if the plan pushes through, TransNusa aims to start servicing the route in the first quarter of 2025, initially operating two to three flights times weekly, “depending on the results of the study.”
He added that Manado is the hub for COMAR ARJ21, a jet aircraft with a specially-designed interior featuring 95 seats.
Garuda Group’s Citylink Indonesia revived the Davao-Manado-Davao air route with its twice-weekly flights on September 27, 2019. However, then Mayor Sara Duterte suspended four international flights, including Garuda’s Davao-Manado-Davao, and 21 domestic flights from Davao International Airport effective March 2020 to contain the spread of the coronavirus disease then.
Aside from TransNusa, Leading Edge Air Services Corporation (LEASCOR), the aviation arm of ACDI Multi-Purpose Cooperative (MPC), also expressed interest to service the same route.
The meeting between the MinDA officials and TransNusa executives was facilitated by the Indonesian Consulate General in Davao.
MinDa said in a statement that the airline recognizes the “crucial role a direct Manado-Davao air link could play in boosting economic ties, promoting tourism, and facilitating trade across the region.”
It said that TransNusa “is the first airline worldwide to utilize COMAC ARJ21.”
“The airline is dedicated to providing reliable, safe, and affordable air travel across Indonesia and Southeast Asia. With a strong focus on connectivity and customer service, TransNusa aims to enhance regional mobility and contribute to the economic development of the communities it serves,” it added.
It added that the revival of the new route is “expected to significantly boost economic activities, increase people-to-people exchanges, and support the BIMP-EAGA vision of a more connected and economically vibrant region.” (Antonio L. Colina IV / MindaNews)
