MCIA welcomes Qatar Airways with the relaunching of Cebu-Doha service

Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu – GMR MEGAWIDE Cebu Airport Corporation (GMCAC), together with Mactan-Cebu International Airport Authority (MCIAA) welcomes Qatar Airways with the re-launching of its direct service from Cebu to Doha, Qatar. Starting 24 July 2020, the airline will have three weekly flights from Mactan-Cebu International Airport (MCIA) to Hamad International Airport. The Cebu-Doha service will operate every Sunday, Tuesday, and Friday with a Boeing 777-300 aircraft and a capacity of 42 business class seats and 312 economy class seats. A water cannon salute welcomed the inaugural Doha flight that arrived at Cebu on Friday, 24 July 2020, at 4:45 p.m.

“Despite the challenges we have encountered at the start of the year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the relaunching of Qatar Airways’ Cebu-Doha route gives us hope to push forward and remain resilient through these tough times,” said Atty. Steve Dicdican, MCIAA General Manager and Chief Executive Officer. “We want to help bring home our kababayans to their families and at the same time slowly jumpstart our economy.”

“The relaunching of the Doha service allows us to adhere to our commitment of offering more connectivity to the rest of the world,” said Andrew Acquuah-Harrison, GMCAC Chief Executive Advisor, MCIA’s private operator. “This also shows that, despite the challenges of COVID-19, we continue to give passengers options to return to the Philippines or connect them to their destinations.”

“We are delighted to be launching a new direct service to Cebu, offering our passengers another gateway into the Philippines. Being the airline that has never stopped flying since COVID-19 hit, it has been Qatar Airways’ mission to take people home safely during the pandemic, and we have helped more than two million people get home to their loved ones since February,” said Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, His Excellency Akbar Al Baker in a statement. “With over 40 onward available connections to Africa, Europe and the Middle East, passengers from Cebu and Guangzhou will be able to enjoy the Best Airline in the World and the World’s Best Business Class Seat while also having access to the largest and broadest network in the region via Hamad International Airport, the Best Airport in the Middle East.”

ABOUT GMR MEGAWIDE CEBU AIRPORT CORPORATION

On November 2014, Filipino-led developer GMR MEGAWIDE Cebu Airport Corporation (GMCAC) took over development of all landside facilities of the Mactan-Cebu International Airport (MCIA) under a 25-year Public-Private Partnership concession agreement with the Philippine Government. It opened the new international Terminal, Terminal 2, in July 2018 and completed the full renovation of Terminal 1 in December 2019. GMCAC is a joint venture company comprised of Filipino engineering and infrastructure company Megawide and Indian infrastructure developer GMR Group.