The Department of Transportation (DOTr) on Tuesday announced non-stop Manila to Paris flights by Air France starting 8 December this year.
The thrice weekly flights, the DOTr said, will jumpstart the civil aviation cooperation signed recently between the Philippines and France.
Transport Secretary Jaime J. Bautista said this is the first non-stop service from Europe to the Philippines under the Ferdinand Marcos Jr. administration.
Bautista said documentary requirements had to be completed first and the airport slot assignment secured before the flights could be announced.
French Ambassador Marie Fontane, who noted the absence of such flights for 20 years, thanked the Philippine government for backing up the direct flights to Manila.
An Airbus 350-900 – configured as a tri-class – will fly 14 hours from Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris to the NAIA, according to Air France/KLM general manager Kemke Kroese.
Capt. Stanley Ng, Philippine Airlines (PAL) president and chief operating officer, said the flag carrier had for some time been studying the possibility of direct flights from Manila to Paris.
