October 16, 2009 15:30 PM

Suspended Zamboanga-Sandakan Air Link Resumes

KOTA KINABALU, Oct 16 (Bernama) -- Trade and tourism exchanges between Sandakan and Zamboanga are back on track as regular flights connecting the two neighbouring areas in the Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East Asean Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) resume Friday.

Zest Air's new 56-seater MA 60 aircraft departed from the Zamboanga Airport in the Philippines at 12.45pm and arrived in Sandakan, Sabah, at 2.00pm, marking the revival of the Zamboanga-Sandakan air link which has been suspended since April last year.

A statement issued by the Mindanao Economic Development Council (MEDCo) Friday said that Zest Air would operate flights to Sandakan three times a week, on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

"This is part of our commitment to complement government efforts in enhancing transportation connectivity in BIMP-EAGA," said Ken Tan, station manager of Zest Air Zamboanga.

"The revival of the Zamboanga-Sandakan air link will provide convenience to the public from Mindanao and Palawan," he said.

Tan said the flights would cut travel time for tourists and businessmen from Mindanao in the Philippines who needed to go to Manila ahead of time just to catch up flights to Sandakan.

"We're getting more than 50 per cent in terms of passenger load and we're getting more in the coming weeks," he said, adding that the airline was targeting tourists, traders and overseas Filipino workers as potential markets.

Undersecretary Virgilio Leyretana, chair of the MEDCo, lauded the reopening of the air link, saying it would again allow Mindanao to penetrate a wider market for tourism and trade.

Zamboanga and Sandakan have been closely linked through the BIMP-EAGA initiative, Leyretana said.

"This is truly a noble effort by the private sector to bring growth in the region. I expect that this development will pave the way for more enhanced cross-border linkages with our counterparts in EAGA," he said.

Zest Air started operations last year with a thrust to establish links in regional and Southeast Asia, particulary within the BIMP-EAGA region.

-- BERNAMA

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