The City Government of Borongan and Philippine Airlines, the country’s flag carrier, inked a Memorandum of Agreement on Tuesday, November 29, to start flight operations from Cebu to Borongan City Airport (IATA Code: BPA).
The maiden flight to Borongan City Airport will run on December 19, 2022. PAL will operate Cebu-Borongan return flights twice a week – every Monday and Friday.
“We are very happy with this partnership. With these direct flights, it will be more convenient for Boronganons to travel to and from our beloved city. Many travelers have long lamented how inconvenient it is to travel to our city. Hopefully, these flights will create more business and tourism opportunities for Borongan,” Borongan City Mayor Jose Ivan Dayan Agda said.
Currently, travelers to the capital of Eastern Samar province have to land at Tacloban Airport. They will then have to travel 5-6 hours by land to reach Borongan City. The other option is to travel by land from Manila, which takes around 2 days.
“The entire Philippine Airlines family shares the excitement of the people of Eastern Samar over the new PAL service between Cebu and Borongan City. When we launch this service in a few weeks’ time, we’ll work hard to promote travel between Borongan and the rest of the Philippines…We look forward to welcoming more business and leisure travelers from around the Philippines and the world on board to our flights in Borongan City so that they may discover spectacular surfing haven and the home of vast natural treasures,” said Captain Stanley Ng, President and COO of Philippine Airlines.
The flights to Borongan City will also benefit the province of Eastern Samar as well as nearby Northern Samar towns Lapinig, Gamay, and Mapanas.
“One of the main reasons why many of our fellow Boronganons who have been living elsewhere do not come and visit our city is because of the travel required to go here. With these new flights, we want to make it convenient for Boronganons to come home. Consider this the local government’s Christmas gift to our fellow Boronganons,” Rupert Ambil, City Information OIC and Head of Borongan City Flight Operations, said.
The road to opening flight routes
Borongan City Airport was completed in March 2013. This is the first time that the airport will be used for regular commercial operations.
Initial talks for the opening of the flight route started in July 2022, with the initiative of Borongan City. Mayor Agda assigned Ambil to discuss potential partnerships with the country’s airlines. The city also had to get approval from the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) to make sure that the airport is ready for commercial flights.
“CAAP responded immediately to our request, and gave us the layout of the Borongan City Airport. They were very helpful in giving us the steps we needed to take to make our airport ready for commercial flights. We are very thankful to them,” Ambil said.
CAAP also gave x-ray machines from other airport facilities to Borongan City. The Borongan City Government will handle the logistics, and will manage the refurbishment of the airport following recommendations from flight specialists.
“We consider these initial costs as an investment. These flights, we hope, will directly translate into more tourists visiting us, and businesses starting in the city. We want Borongan City to be the regional sports tourism hub of Eastern Visayas, so this is just a small step towards achieving that goal,” Mayor Agda noted.
Ready for development
Borongan City has been positioning itself as the next major tourism hub of Eastern Visayas in recent years. In December 2019, the city hosted its first Surf in the City festival, the last leg of the then Philippine Surfing Championship Tour. Then the pandemic hit.
The city again hosted Surf in the City in December 2021, the first national sports competition to be held during the pandemic. The third run of the Surf in the City is currently ongoing, with around 300 surfers from across the Philippines currently competing in Borongan.
Borongan’s geography is unique in that it is the only city in the Philippines where the beach and surf spots are right in the city center. The city government under Mayor Agda plans to build on this natural resource to attract more tourists and develop local talent.
“We have made significant investments in improving the quality of our beach area. We’ve trained our local surfers to be certified surf instructors so they are ready to teach tourists interested in surfing. We’ve also invested in training our local surfers and exposing them to national competitions. Our dream is to raise an international surf champion from Borongan,” Mayor Agda noted.
While pushing towards further economic development through tourism and business investments, the city government has also made waves in its social services programs. Dukwag Agrikultura provides interest-free loans to local farmers, fisherfolk, and livestock raisers. Qualified senior citizens and students also get a monthly allowance from the local government. Medicine is also provided free to Borongan residents via the City Pharmacy.
“While we make investments to become a regional sports tourism hub, we do not forget about our fellow Boronganons. So we are also making a direct, immediate impact on the lives of our residents,” Mayor Agda said.
