As airline suspends route, Palace partially lifts travel ban to Korea

As airline suspends route, Palace partially lifts travel ban to Korea

(Philstar.com) – March 3, 2020 – 5:53 p.m.

MANILA, Philippines – Four days after banning Filipinos from traveling to South Korea, the Philippines announced that it was partially lifting the travel ban, an unexpected order that came just as an airline Local announced that it was suspending its routes in Korea to comply with previous government restrictions.

"The IATF has authorized Filipinos to travel to South Korea, except throughout the North Gyeongsang Province, including the city of Daegu and Cheongdo County, where the virus epidemic is concentrated" , Presidential spokesperson Salvador Panelo said during a press briefing.

The latest order was a pleasant surprise for Filipino travelers hit by the ban that only came into effect last Friday. But for airlines, it was an unexpected change after hundreds of flights had already been grounded.

For request of Philstar.com in their next steps after the last order from the Palace, Charo Lagamon, director of corporate communications at Cebu Pacific, only said: "There is still no official directive".

The situation is not new. Last Wednesday, when the ban on Filipino tourists to South Korea was announced, the airlines took a different approach in the absence of official guidelines, which came two days after the announcement. While the flag bearer Philippine Airlines (PAL) and AirAsia did not wait for the signed order and implemented the ban, Cebu Pacific chose to wait for the official document from the Interagency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF).

There are indications that the same thing can happen this time.

A few hours before Panelo's announcement, AirAsia Philippines has just made a separate announcement, claiming that the airline has suspended certain flights to and from South Korea from March 4 to 28. AirAsia operates flights to Incheon and Busan from Kalibo, Cebu and Manila.

"In accordance with the Philippine government's directive to impose travel restrictions due to the current public health situation, AirAsia is canceling some of its flights between the Philippines and South Korea until further government orders," said the airline in a statement.

AirAsia has not responded to Philstar.com when asked if he would make cancellations after the ban was lifted.

The decision to lift the ban was made Tuesday morning by the IATF, which brings together various agencies including the Justice, Tourism and Health departments. "All Filipinos who intend to visit other parts of South Korea must sign and sign a declaration indicating their knowledge and understanding of the risks incurred during their trip," said Panelo.

Aside from AirAsia, PAL announced this weekend that some of its flights to and from South Korea will be canceled from March 1 to 31.

The standard bearer however kept a number of flights to and from Incheon and Busan for travelers not covered by the North Gyeongsang ban.

Cebu Pacific, meanwhile, had also suspended its Manila-Incheon-Manila, Cebu-Incheon-Cebu and Kalibo-Incheon-Kalibo routes from March 3 to April 30. The low-cost airline offers a total of 40 flights a week between the Philippines and the South. Korea.

While Filipinos are now allowed to enter most of Korea, Panelo said the ban on foreign nationals from North Gyeongsang province from entering the Philippines remains in effect.

South Korea on Tuesday recorded 4,812 cases of coronavirus in the country, of which almost 90% were in Daegu and North Gyeongsang. The Korean Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the death toll had risen to 28. – Patricia Lourdes Viray with reports from Richmond Mercurio

As it happens

LAST UPDATED: March 3, 2020 – 3:01 p.m.