Cebu Pacific enters jet leasing business
INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines — Cebu Pacific, which has been beefing up its fleet, is set to lend two jets to Saudi Arabian low-cost airline Flyadeal amid a global supply chain crunch that has been affecting aircraft availability.
On Wednesday, the carriers signed the wet-lease agreement for two months—the latter part of June to August—to cater to anticipated summer peak flying season in the Middle Eastern country.
This partnership is a first for Cebu Pacific, which flies to Middle East via Dubai.
In this wet leasing arrangement, Cebu Pacific will not only lend an aircraft but it will also provide flight and cabin crew to operate the jet.
“With Cebu Pacific’s growing fleet, we seek to maximize the potential of our increased capacity through all months of the year,” Cebu Pacific CEO Mike Szucs said.
Szucs explained that third quarter is usually a lean period for the carrier, making it ideal to lend the aircraft instead of having them parked. Moving forward, the budget carrier is mulling over entering into more wet leasing deals.
Cebu Pacific entered into this deal despite the ongoing supply chain concern—lack of spare parts—that has left many aircraft parked for a longer period for maintenance.
Cebu Pacific eyes fleet of 100
The Gokongwei-led airline started 2025 with 98 aircraft, targeting to end the year with 100 units.
By 2029, it will start receiving the first batch of jets it ordered from European aircraft manufacturer Airbus. The airline finalized a P1.4-trillion order of up to 152 jets last year.
READ: Expansion costs drag Cebu Pacific 2024 income to P5.4B
“This was the starting point for wide-ranging commercial discussions covering a broad range of areas including more immediate needs of wet-leasing aircraft for Flyadeal’s busy upcoming summer season,” Flyadeal CEO Steven Greenway said.
The Gokongwei-led airline is also looking into leasing aircraft from Flyadeal in the future.
Flyadeal, founded in 2017, flies to 40 destinations. It has bases in Jeddah, Riyadh and Dammam.
Outside the Philippines, the Saudi Arabian airline is also looking at establishing more presence in Southeast Asia.
This year, Cebu Pacific is projecting a passenger volume upswing of about 20 percent after servicing 24.5 million guests in 2024. The budget carrier has positioned itself for growth after launching 24 new domestic and international reports in the past year.
As of end-April, the low-cost airline had flown 9.2 million passengers, up 24.2 percent from the previous year.
