Due to the extension of the travel ban between the Philippines and United Arab Emirates, Cebu Pacific has cancelled its remaining long haul flight for 15 more days. Cebu Pacific flights between Manila and Dubai has been cancelled from June 1 to 15 as a result of ban on travelers coming from the United Arab Emirates.
According to Cebu Pacific, the following flights have been cancelled:
- 5J 14 (Manila-Dubai) from June 4-14
- 5J 17 (Dubai-Manila) from June 5-14
- 5J 19 (Dubai-Manila) from June 5-15
Despite this cancellation, Cebu Pacific will continue to operate its other scheduled domestic and international flights.
Dubai is Cebu Pacific’s remaining long haul destination for now
Prior to the pandemic, Cebu Pacific operated three flights longer with a duration of 8 hours and up. These are Manila to Dubai, Manila to Sydney, and Manila to Melbourne. With this pandemic however, Australia has somehow closed its borders for international travel. This forced Cebu Pacific to cancel all its Australian flights, leaving its Manila to Dubai flights as the airline’s remaining long haul flight.
Until today, there is still no definite word on the resumption of Cebu Pacific’s Australian flights.
This made us think whether Cebu Pacific will bring back its Australian flights. Hopefully, they will. However, Sydney and Melbourne flights still do not reflect on the airline’s June and July schedule.
On the other hand, Cebu Pacific’s Dubai flights seem to be gaining edge due to the number of returning OFWs until this travel ban happened. The Philippines’ Inter-Agency Task Force for Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) had to recommend the banning of travelers from the UAE after an OFW tested positive of the Covid-19 Indian variant.
The resumption of Cebu Pacific’s Dubai flights will be dependent on the recommendation of the IATF-EID after June 15. We hope for a favorable decision.
