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The story
Founded by John Gokongwei on Aug 26, 1988.1
Foundation and growth (1988–2006)
Cebu Pacific was established on August 26, 1988. Republic Act No. 7151, which grants a legislative franchise to Cebu Air, Inc. to operate, was approved on August 30, 1991. The airline began operations on March 8, 1996, with its first flight from Manila to Cebu. Domestic services began following market deregulation by the Philippine government. The airline was subsequently acquired by JG Summit Holdings, owned at the time by John Gokongwei.
The airline temporarily ceased operations in February 1998 after being grounded by the government following the crash of Flight 387 that killed 104, but resumed services later the next month following re-certification of its aircraft. It initially started with 24 domestic flights daily among Metro Manila, Metro Cebu, and Metro Davao. By the end of 2001, its operations had grown to about 80 daily flights to 18 domestic destinations.
In the 2000s, Cebu Pacific was granted rights to operate international flights to the region, including Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, South Korea, Hong Kong, and Guam. International flights were launched on November 22, 2001, with a twice-daily service to Hong Kong. Thrice-weekly flights to Seoul commenced on March 1, 2002, followed by Singapore on October 1. Other regional flights were introduced and suspended later; however, including flights to Singapore (from November 6, 2002, to January 2003) and from Manila via Subic to Seoul (from December 2002) due in part to the effects of the SARS epidemic.
On November 10, 2005, Cebu Pacific launched "Go", a fare discount program that permanently reduced its fares by half. The move was done to increase the airline's revenue by twenty percent. Following this, Cebu Pacific experienced significant passenger growth, hiking up its sales volume by ninety percent. Its president and CEO, Lance Gokongwei, anticipated that with the low fares, air travel would be cheaper than sea travel. He further added that:
This is all about getting people to think about flying. For those who fly today, we would like to encourage them to fly more frequently, and for those who haven’t flown before, we want to welcome them on board and introduce them to air travel.
The airline resumed its Manila–Singapore flights on August 31, 2006, and launched a direct flight from Cebu to Singapore on October 23. It was the first low-cost airline to serve the Cebu-Singapore-Cebu sector, and competing directly with Singapore Airlines subsidiary SilkAir, the only Philippine carrier serving the route for years until Philippine Airlines resumed direct service in 2017. Cebu Pacific's direct Cebu–Hong Kong flights began on October 2, 2006, making it the Philippine carrier to serve the Cebu-Hong Kong-Cebu route after PAL terminated its direct service and began code-sharing with Cathay Pacific on the route. Manila–Bangkok flights were also launched in the same year.
Initial expansion (2007–2011)
In April 2008, Cebu Pacific launched direct flights to its first two destinations in Vietnam: Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.
On May 8, 2008, Cebu Pacific opened Francisco Bangoy International Airport in Davao City as its third hub and launched direct flights from Davao to Singapore, Hong Kong, and Iloilo. In late 2007, Cebu Pacific announced plans to launch non-stop flights to the United States West Coast, Houston, and Chicago by mid 2009.
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Cebu Pacific's plans to begin international flights from Clark in 2007 were initially unsuccessful when its request was denied. The nations involved came to an agreement that Cebu Pacific would be only allowed to operate charter flights from Clark to the respective countries' airport(s). Only Singapore initially agreed to allow Cebu Pacific to fly scheduled flights from Clark. After launching flights between Clark and Cebu in 2006, on November 8, 2008, the airline commenced international flights from Clark to Hong Kong, Macau, Bangkok and Singapore, making Clark its fourth hub.
On May 28, 2008, Cebu Pacific was named as the world's number one airline in terms of growth. The airline was also ranked fifth in Asia for Budget Airline passengers transported and 23rd in the world. On November 20, 2008, it started operating direct flights to Japan, starting with Osaka.
In August 2009, Cebu Pacific became the first airline in the Philippines to use social media; the airline created a fan page on Facebook and Twitter. In October 2010, the airline completed an initial public offering of 30.4% of outstanding shares, raising ₱23.3 billion prior to an exercise of an overallotment option. By January 2011, the airline flew its 50 millionth passenger from Manila to Beijing.
Further growth and re-branding (2012–2020)
Cebu Pacific continued its network expansion in the 2010s. Continuing its regional expansion, it launched flights to Siem Reap and Xiamen in 2012. Domestically, it opened two local bases in Kalibo and Iloilo. It also expanded its Japanese operations, launching flights to Tokyo and Nagoya in March 2014, followed by Fukuoka in December 2015.
After taking delivery of its first two Airbus A330-300s, Cebu Pacific commenced international long-haul flights on October 7, 2013, to Dubai. Between 2014 and 2015, it launched flights to more destinations in the Middle East, including Kuwait City, Doha, Dammam, and Riyadh. It also launched flights to Sydney—its first destination in Australia—followed by Melbourne in 2018. All Middle Eastern destinations, except Dubai, were terminated in 2017.
On December 29, 2014, Cebu Pacific was fined ₱52 million following the numerous flight cancellations and delays during the December 2014 Christmas peak season.
On January 8, 2015, the airline flew its 100 millionth passenger. On June 1, Cebu Pacific revealed its new logo that represents the colors of the Philippines and also symbolizes as an evolution of a low-cost pioneer. The airline received its first Airbus A320 painted in the new livery on January 22, 2016. An Airbus A320-200 (RP-C4101) was the last remaining aircraft that had the 2005 livery until it was returned to its lessor due to the expiration of its lease in September 2026.
In March 2016, Cebu Pacific launched flights to Guam, making it the first and only destination in the United States. This route was suspended in December 2019, along with Siem Reap.
On October 20, 2017, Cebu Pacific opened Laguindingan Airport as its seventh base. On the same day, it flew its 150 millionth passenger to Cagayan de Oro. In 2018, Cebgo, Cebu Pacific's regional subsidiary, launched flights to Basco, Batanes.
COVID-19 pandemic (2020–2022)
The COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted the operations of Cebu Pacific in 2020, causing a three-month suspension of operations during the enhanced community quarantine in Luzon and a reduction of its workforce. Due to low passenger demand, the airline laid off 1,300 employees that year, and sent fourteen aircraft to indefinite storage in Alice Springs. By the end of the year, it reported a net loss of ₱22.2 billion, its first annual loss since 2008.
On March 8, 2021, Cebu Pacific celebrated its twenty-fifth anniversary. In May, it closed three fundraising transactions totaling ₱40.5 billion (US$822 million) to help the airline recover from the pandemic, which consisted of a ₱16 billion loan from government-owned financial institutions and private banks, ₱12.5 billion from preferred stock, and ₱12 billion from convertible bonds. As several COVID-19 variants emerged that year, which led to another spike in cases, it widened its losses to ₱24.9 billion.
As travel demand recovers, it started rehiring retrenched employees in November 2021. In March 2022, Cebu Pacific flew its 200 millionth passenger from Manila to Cebu. By December 2022, the airline operated at 92% of pre-pandemic levels.
On December 5, 2022, Lance Gokongwei resigned as the airline's president and chief executive officer (CEO)−a position he held since the airline's inception in 1996. His resignation took effect on January 1, 2023, and was subsequently elevated to chairman. Alexander Lao was then appointed president, while Michael B. Szucs assumed his role as CEO.
Post-pandemic recovery and third expansion (2023–present)
On January 25, 2023, Cebu Pacific launched its new campaign, "Let's Fly Every Juan", at a press conference at the Ayala Museum. It then resumed its remaining international flights that were suspended during the pandemic, including China, with the exception of Beijing. On April 21, Cebu Pacific reopened its Pampanga hub at Clark International Airport. By the end of 2023, after three consecutive financial years of losses, Cebu Pacific reported its first full-year post-pandemic profit.
On February 28, 2024, Cebu Pacific was awarded the Best Airline award at the Routes Asia Awards 2024 for its "exceptional contributions to airport and destination marketing in the Asia Pacific region". It was also awarded Best Low-Cost Airline Brand and Most Sustainable Low-Cost Airline in the Philippines for 2023 by the World Economic Magazine.
In July 2024, Cebu Pacific shelved its plans to expand its long-haul operations. It then reduced its flights to China due to weak demand amid geopolitical tensions, and likewise terminated flights to Beijing. The airline focused instead on expanding regionally within a five-hour radius, launching flights to secondary cities in Southeast Asia. On July 16, 2024, it expanded its Bangkok operations by launching thrice-weekly flights to Don Mueang International Airport to complement its twice-daily Suvarnabhumi flights. As part of its regional expansion, it started flying thrice weekly to Da Nang on December 7, 2023, Kaohsiung on August 16, 2024 (after a fifteen-year hiatus), and Chiang Mai on October 29. Continuing its domestic expansion, Cebu Pacific expanded its regional network in Visayas and Mindanao, launching eighteen new inter-island routes from its hubs in Cebu, Davao City, and Iloilo, as well as select flights from Clark. Likewise, new international services from these hubs were either launched or revived: new direct flights from Cebu to Bangkok and Osaka began in mid-October, while Davao–Hong Kong services were relaunched in the same month including a new Davao–Bangkok service. It also resumed international flights from Iloilo International Airport after a four-year hiatus.
On December 11, 2024, Cebu Pacific flew its 250 millionth passenger from Singapore to Manila. On January 16, 2025, it launched direct flights to Sapporo. On March 31, direct Iloilo–Bangkok flights were launched until its suspension in 2026. On April 7, direct flights were launched between Cebu and Ho Chi Minh City, in response to PAL launching its own service a month later.
Cebu Pacific entered the aircraft leasing business in May 2025, when it signed a wet lease deal with flyadeal. From June to August 2025, it lent two Airbus A320-200 jets (including crew and maintenance) to cater to the Saudi low-cost carrier's peak summer season while local travel demand is low during those months. CEB followed this up in July 2026 with another wet-lease deal with Vietnam Airlines, deploying one Airbus A320neo to service select domestic routes from Ho Chi Minh City until September.
On July 14, 2026, it announced the introduction of the Starlink in-flight Wi-Fi beginning in 2027, becoming the first low-cost carrier in Southeast Asia to do so.
From Wikipedia’s article on Cebu Pacific, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.4