9-mo Cebu Pacific passenger traffic jumped 14% to 20M
Cebu Pacific of the Gokongwei Group realized a 14-percent jump in passenger volume in the first nine months, with the budget carrier expecting stronger figures in the last stretch of the year.
The airline on Wednesday said that it carried 20 million passengers in the first nine months, up from 17.5 million last year.
During the period, domestic passengers climbed by 12.7 percent to 14.9 million. The number of international passengers likewise went up by 17.7 percent to 5.1 million.
Seat load factor, which measures the percentage of available seating occupied by paying passengers, averaged 84.8 percent. Overall capacity, on the other hand, increased by 14 percent to 23.5 million.
For September alone, passenger traffic inched up by 2.6 percent to 1.8 million from 1.78 million flyers.
“September’s results reflected the typical lean travel period in the Philippines, which we use strategically to complete aircraft maintenance and prepare our fleet for the peak season,” Xander Lao, president and chief commercial officer of Cebu Pacific, said in a disclosure to the local bourse.
“We are now entering the fourth quarter with stronger aircraft availability and greater capacity—adding flight frequencies and deploying widebody aircraft on high-demand routes—to better capture the anticipated surge in holiday travel and optimize revenue performance,” he added.
The firm has been expanding its network, adding more flights to domestic and foreign routes.
Cebu Pacific flies to 37 domestic routes and 26 international destinations.
Its fleet is composed of 98 aircraft.
The low-cost carrier reported a sharp rise in net income in the first six months of 2025, hitting P8.97 billion, fueled by passenger growth.
Total revenues also rose 23 percent to P63.3 billion.
The group was optimistic about keeping this momentum, given the country’s “growing economy, favorable demographics and expanding tourism sector,” Michael Szucs, chief executive officer of Cebu Pacific, earlier said.
