Frasco pushes for direct India-Phl flights

Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco is pushing for the establishment of direct flights from India to the Philippines, particularly to Cebu, following her meeting with IndiGo Senior Vice President Vinay Malhotra in New Delhi, as part of the State Visit of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to India this week.

At the meeting, Frasco emphasized the Philippines’ openness and commitment to tourism growth under the Marcos administration, highlighting the President’s push for generational reforms “to enhance the climate for travel.”

“No less than our President, by way of these structural changes that he is making to make the climate for travel from India to the Philippines truly flourish, has communicated the government’s desire to expand connectivity to the Philippines,” she noted.

For his part, Malhotra shared the airline’s ambitious expansion plans, including the upcoming deployment of long-haul aircraft capable of direct flights from India to the Philippines' key gateways: Manila and Cebu.

In response to Secretary Frasco’s proposal to introduce nonstop flights from India to Manila and Cebu, Malhotra said, “the Philippines is definitely on their radar.”

The IndiGo executive highlighted the airline's impressive fleet growth—with one new aircraft added weekly and over 1,000 on order—positioning IndiGo as a vital player in boosting regional and global connectivity.

He added that the airline is looking at the Philippines “very, very positively,” and is eager to include the country in its expansion strategy, alongside destinations such as Seychelles, Mauritius, and Bali.

“These are very encouraging remarks from your end, and I am very pleased to know of your forthcoming plans, not only for Manila, but also for Cebu,” Secretary Frasco replied.

Among the commitments made by the tourism chief to strengthen regional air connectivity between the two countries are coordination, support for partnerships, and joint marketing efforts.

The meeting also acknowledged India’s recent announcement of free e-visas for Filipinos—a move welcomed by the Philippines, which earlier implemented the same policy to boost Indian tourist arrivals.

According to its website, IndiGo is India’s largest passenger airline, operating over 2,300 daily flights across more than 130 destinations with a fleet of over 400 aircraft. In 2024, it welcomed 118 million customers on board.

Meanwhile, among Secretary Frasco's key engagements in India was her meeting with her counterpart, Tourism Minister Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat.

Their discussions focused on joint promotions, data sharing, trade show collaboration, and participation in mutual tourism events.

“Your Excellency, we certainly view this with great optimism, as there is an opportunity for mutual growth as a reciprocal act on the part of the government. We are very grateful that your Prime Minister has announced free visa for Filipinos coming into India. And with this direct connection, we foresee ease of access for both our countries, and we are very hopeful that the Air India flights beginning in October will just be the beginning of connections to more cities in India, as well as more islands in the Philippines,” the tourism chief said.

“We are very excited to engage in collaborations, in the aspect of working together on expanding connectivity, and engaging in joint promotions. Our private sector is also very eager to work with yours, especially in terms of engaging in trade shows as well as meetings,” she added.

For his part, the Indian tourism minister emphasized that their country puts a premium on travel and tourism as a sector, extending an invitation to the Philippines to join their major tourism fairs toward mutual benefit.

“The Government of India, we make the policy, we look after the joint promotions, international promotions, and all the states are the same,” he said.