Air France Resumes Flights to Manila for Winter 2024-25

Air France is set to reintroduce flights to Manila, Philippines, marking its return after over 20 years. Starting December 7, 2024, the airline will offer thrice-weekly flights between Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG) and Ninoy Aquino International Airport (MNL) in Manila. The service will be operated using the state-of-the-art Airbus A350-900 aircraft.

Air France had previously ceased its direct flights to Manila in 2004 following its merger with KLM. Since then, it has maintained a connection through a codeshare arrangement on KLM’s flights from Amsterdam to Manila. At present, KLM provides five weekly flights to Manila, with a stopover in Taipei’s Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport. However, KLM plans to reduce its service to four flights per week starting this winter season, according to OAG Schedules Analyser.

With the addition of Manila, Air France will extend its reach to 14 destinations in the Asia-Pacific region for the winter 2024-25 season. This expansion includes key cities such as Bangkok, Ho Chi Minh City, Mumbai, and Singapore. Currently, Manila’s only nonstop flights from Europe are provided by Turkish Airlines from Istanbul Airport, with KLM offering one-stop connections from Amsterdam.

Market intelligence data from Sabre shows that the Manila-London route was the most popular Philippines-Europe city pair in 2023, drawing 291,000 two-way passengers. The Manila-Amsterdam route followed with 125,000 passengers, while the Manila-Paris route came in third with 116,000 passengers.

Air France’s reintegration into the Manila market is part of its broader strategy to enhance its global network. The airline is also debuting five new routes for the winter season. These include flights to Salvador de Bahia, Brazil, starting October 28 with three weekly services; Kilimanjaro, Tanzania, beginning November 18 with three weekly flights from Zanzibar; Malé, Maldives, with up to two flights per week commencing December 20; and Kiruna, Sweden, featuring one weekly flight starting December 21.

This strategic expansion underscores Air France’s commitment to strengthening its presence in key international markets and offering more travel options to its customers.