Jeju Air resumes air service to Guam
By Pacific Island Times News Staff
Despite the Covid-19 surge, Guam saw the arrival of 100 tourists from South Korea over the weekend.
The Guam Visitors Bureau welcomed the passengers who arrived Saturday afternoon on Jeju Air's charter flight -- the airline’s first flight to the island since the beginning of the pandemic.
The passengers arrived on B737-800 aircraft.
In commemoration of Jeju’s first charter flight, GVB in partnership with the A.B. Won Pat International Airport Authority, greeted the Korean passengers with live music and complimentary hand sanitizers were given out to arriving passengers.
“We are happy to welcome back Jeju Air and our visitors that flew into our island paradise today. This is a great example of the tourism industry trying to safely move forward as the world deals with an ongoing pandemic,” said GVB president & CEO Carl T.C. Gutierrez. “As we continue to work hard with all of our travel trade and industry partners, we thank Jeju Air for their renewed commitment to servicing Guam.”
Another charter flight is anticipated on Sept. 22. Jeju Air is slated to resume regular air service twice a week beginning Oct. 28.
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Meanwhile, Japan Airlines has extended the suspension of its flight service to Guam amid the lingering global spread of the delta-strengthened coronavirus.
Oct. 1st marks the 50th anniversary of Japan Airlines' Guam-Tokyo route.
"Though it would be really nice if our flights shifted back into play on that particular day, Covid-19 continues to hinder our movement, " JAL said in a statement last week. "For now, let's hope for an early vanquishment of the virus and let's proceed with safety precaution measures at all times."
The carrier said it will continue to review travel restrictions within each destination and update its international network plan.
United Airlines has expanded its Guam-Manila service to daily from five-times weekly beginning Sept. 7. This expanded service conveniently provides customers in Guam with more options to travel to Manila and daily connections for Manila passengers connecting to United’s daily Guam-Saipan service and Guam-Honolulu flights that offer further connections to U.S. cities such as Los Angeles, San Francisco and Denver.
Sam Shinohara, United’s managing director of Airport Operations for Asia-Pacific said, “United continues to find opportunities to provide better connections for its customers in the region. The Guam-Manila flight is an important service for Guam residents seeking medical care in the Philippines and Philippines travelers looking to connect to the mainland U.S. through Guam and Honolulu.
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