Ben Madilynn
STARTING December 8, 2024, there will be a direct flight between Paris and Manila, and vice versa.
This was announced on Tuesday, September 10, 2024, by Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista during a press briefing in Malacañang in a bid to boost trade and tourism exchange between the Philippines and France.
“I think this is quite an important one. I think it’s an announcement that will make Filipinos happy because they will be able to fly non-stop from the Philippines to Paris and from Paris to the Philippines,” Bautista said, as he expressed gratitude to Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the French Republic Marie Fontanel for making it happen.
The direct flight will be through Air France KLM. There will be three direct flights every week — Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays.
Femke Kroese, general manager of Air France KLM for Southeast Asia and Oceania, said online booking begins September 10.
“We will be offering competitive fares for the Filipino community to travel to Paris,” Kroese said.
“We will also be launching promotional fares within the next period,” she added.
Kroese said flights from Manila will be at night, which means passengers will arrive in Paris in the daytime “for you to have the whole day to explore.”
“The gastronomy, the food and beverages are important for French people. Champagne will be served to all passengers so that you will be arriving in style,” she added.
With the expected influx of passengers, Bautista assured the readiness of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).
“Of course, you know that Naia is a very congested airport, and this is the reason why we are privatizing it and making some more improvements. But for these particular flights, NAIA is very much prepared,” Bautista said.
“NAIA will work closely with the officials of Air France – KLM, their ground handlers, their caterers so that Air France will have smooth operations here in the country,” he added. (TPM/SunStar Philippines)
