Property developer Ayala Land Inc. on Thursday told reporters it is also in discussions with other airlines and not just Cebu Pacific Air for the sale of its investment in AirSWIFT, a boutique airline that serves resort destinations.
Mariana Beatriz Zobel de Ayala, Ayala Land executive director, said the terms have not yet been set and that the underlying principle to proposed sale “is really that our core competency is in developing land” and not managing airlines.
“So it’s not exclusive in the sense that we are entertaining several. But I guess what came out in the news is our discussions with Cebu Pacific,” Zobel said.
“When we started this process, our objective really was what would be the best customer experience. So we thought it would be best to cast a wide net. That’s how we started the process,” she said.
Augusto Bengzon, Ayala Land chief financial officer, said they may be more definitive about the planned divestment in about a month.
The said airline was initially established to service Ayala Land’s luxury resorts in Palawan.
“For our Lio estate, we still own the airport there and we would want them to continue, or whoever ends up purchasing Airswift, would need to fly to service our properties, our resorts in Palawan. It’s one of the requirements,” he said.
