Cargo volume handled by Philippine domestic carriers grew 12% in the first quarter of 2018 to 71.299 million kilograms from 63.672 million kg in the same quarter last year, data from the Civil Aeronautics Board showed.
Low-cost carrier Cebu Pacific remained the carrier with the highest cargo volume, accounting for 49% or 34.765 million kg of the total first quarter 2018 volume. This is 21% higher than the 28.706 million kg flown in the first quarter of 2017.
In future, Cebu Pacific’s volumes may rise even more with the recent conversion of two passenger aircraft to dedicated freighters.
READ: Cebu Pacific to operate dedicated cargo aircraft
PAL Express (PALEx) also maintained its position in second place with a 25% share or 17.786 million kg. PALEx’s first quarter volume however, reflects a 19% drop from the 22.01 million kg of cargoes it carried in the same period last year.
Philippine Airlines (PAL), keeping its place in third, accounted for 16% or 11.392 million kg. PAL registered the second biggest improvement for the period with a 52.8% increase from the 7.454 million kg it airlifted in the first quarter of last year.
Budget airline Philippines AirAsia, again in fourth place, contributed 7% to the total with 5.230 million kg, a 24% improvement from the 4.202 million kg it handled last year.
Cebu Pacific’s sister airline Cebgo, which flew 1.033 million kg, accounted for 1.4% of the total. Cebgo’s first-quarter 2018 volume is 14.5% higher than the 902,334 kg it carried in the same period last year.
SEAIR International, which flies to Aklan and Palawan and provides chartered flights to and from South Korea, registered 467,570 kg or 0.7% of the total, placing in sixth place. No comparable figure for the first quarter of 2017 was available.
Leisure airline Magnum (Skyjet) Air flew 0.5% or 350,881 kg, a jump of 39% from the 252,546 kg it handled in the first quarter of 2017.
Boutique airline AirSwift also posted an increment of 51.7% to 170,436 kg from 112,348 kg previously, contributing 0.24% to the total.
Charter airline and seaplane operator Air Juan Aviation, Inc., which started cargo operations in October 2016, posted the highest increase of 228.3% to 103,700 kg from 31,590 kg in the first quarter of 2017. – Roumina Pablo
