Direct flights between the Philippines and Qatar have yet to be affected by the current diplomatic row that has seen several Gulf countries halt air, sea, and land links to Qatar, according to the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB).
CAB executive director Carmelo Arcilla told PortCalls in a phone interview that only two airlines, Philippine Airlines and Qatar Airways, are flying directly between Manila and Doha, and both have not signified intentions to suspend services at the moment.
“I don’t think Philippine Airlines will be affected for now,” Arcilla said.
PAL said flights to the Middle East were operating as scheduled, despite a diplomatic row between Qatar and a bloc of countries in the region comprised of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Yemen, and Egypt. The five countries along with the Maldives severed diplomatic ties with Qatar on June 5, accusing Qatar of supporting extremism. Qatar has denied the allegations.
In a June 6 statement, PAL said it continued to operate 30 flights per week to the Middle East, including four weekly flights to Doha, Qatar.
The airline noted the Philippines was not a party to the row but that it would “observe guidelines issued by said nations.”
One example was the Abu Dhabi Airport Immigration’s order to bar UAE nationals from traveling to Qatar. It likewise said all Qatari nationals would not be allowed to enter the UAE or transit through its airports.
“In light of these guidelines, Philippine Airlines shall not carry Qatari nationals into the UAE (Abu Dhabi / Dubai) and shall not carry UAE nationals into Qatar (Doha),” PAL said.
“PAL continues to monitor the situation and shall issue updates/announcements, as needed,” it added.
PAL also flies seven times per week to Dubai, four times to Kuwait, five times to Dammam, three times to Jeddah, and seven times to Riyadh.
Airlines such as Gulf Air, Etihad Airways, and Emirates said they plan to cancel flights to and from Doha starting June 6. Budget carriers Fly Dubai and Air Arabia have also cancelled routes to Doha. Qatar Airways, meanwhile, has suspended its flights to Saudi Arabia.
Overcapacity
Arcilla said overseas Filipino workers in particular need not worry of flight delays or unavailable services because there is actually overcapacity of flights between the two countries.
Low-cost carrier Cebu Pacific Air has in fact earlier announced plans to end its thrice-weekly Manila-Doha-Manila service starting July 1 due to “substantial oversupply of seats and fares that are so low.” Cebu Pacific will also suspend its services to two other Middle East routes—Kuwait and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia—for the same reason.
Arcilla noted that the Philippines has no issue with Qatar, with President Rodrigo Duterte even visiting the Gulf state last April as part of the administration’s Middle East state visit.
On May 31, the Philippines and Qatar signed a new memorandum of understanding to increase traffic rights between Manila and Doha from the current 14 flights per week to 18 flights per week for the designated airlines of each country.
Based on 2015 data from the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration, there are around 900,000 OFWs in the Middle East, 130,000 of whom are based in Qatar. – Roumina Pablo
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