Cebu Air Inc., the Philippines’ largest carrier, will fully restore its pre-pandemic domestic capacity next month as virus restrictions ease, Chief Executive Officer Lance Gokongwei said.

“The travel and tourism sector is well on its way to recovery,” Gokongwei said in a company event in Cebu province on Tuesday, citing increased bookings. Flights from Manila to key local destinations like Boracay island and Cebu province have surpassed their 2019 frequencies, he said.

The carrier is now running at 96% of its pre-pandemic domestic capacity, Gokongwei said. Its average daily flights for both domestic and international routes increased by 200% to about 300 per day from 2020.

The airline, which started operations in 1996, flew its 200 millionth passenger on Tuesday. Cebu Air covers 33 Philippine destinations and 14 international destinations with a fleet of 74 jets.

No Fuel Hedge 

International travel “will take a while to recover,” possibly early next year, depending on measures countries would impose, Gokongwei said. 

Gokongwei said Cebu Air hasn’t hedged its fuel and will mitigate the impact of higher oil by growing its revenue and reducing other costs through digitization and use of newer jets. It didn’t make sense to hedge during the pandemic since the company didn’t know how many flights it would make, he said.

Cebu Air’s fleet will be 100% Airbus neo jets by 2027, Xander Lao, head of commercial operations, said. Neo jets use a quarter less fuel relative to previous generation jets, helping Cebu Air mitigate the impact of high fuel prices. With customized capacity of 459 seats, Cebu Air’s A330neo jets fly passengers at relatively lower cost.

Cebu Air, one of the few airlines that didn’t undergo bankruptcy proceedings, has enough capital to operate should the pandemic extend. “Relative to other airlines we are in good shape,” he said.