Tuesday, September 2, 2008 [ philstar.com ]
Borongan, Eastern Samar – Foreign and local tourists may now have a convenient way of discovering the unexplored paradise in Eastern Samar.
This, after the new airport in the provincial capital city of Borongan opened here yesterday with an inaugural flight of South East Asian Airlines (Seair).
The historic landing of the first commercial flight to the eastern-most tip of the Visayas was marked by festivities of a people that saw a new door to better opportunities.
Gov. Ben Evardone said they have long been hoping and working for the opening of the Borongan City airport, which he expects to help boost tourism and business in the province.
“We have arrived. We made history today and we will continue to make history. A lot of opportunities are waiting out there for Eastern Samar,” Evardone told his constituents after landing via the historic flight at around 12 noon.
The governor believes that the new airport – the first in the province and which directly links it to Manila, will “unclog and unleash opportunities for our people.”
“Our province used to be isolated in the Eastern Visayas since there was no direct flight to Manila and we had to go to Calbayog in Western Samar or Catarman in Northern Samar. Now, we are very happy and fortunate to have this airport,” he said.
Evardone said he was thankful to President Arroyo for prioritizing the airport in her agenda. The national government has initially released P20 million for the project and has allocated another P20 million for its development.
The governor also thanked the management of Seair for granting his invitation for the airlines to fly to Borongan from Manila and back.
Seair president Avelino Zapanta admitted it was “a gamble” on their part to accept Evardone’s invitation: “But when the governor and the mayors met with us in Manila, they demonstrated their solidarity in building this project so we are also happy to help.”
Zapanta said they decided to extend operations to the new airport after seeing the potential of the province of Eastern Samar in becoming a well-developed tourist destination.
“We are also happy to be the first airline to fly into the city of Borongan. That’s history and you can’t erase that. We are also hoping this will contribute to economic progress to the province,” he added.
The maiden flight took an hour and 20 minutes via Seair’s Dornier 328, a 32-seater German aircraft known to be one of the fastest jet props in the world, which left Manila Domestic Airport at 10:50 a.m.
The airline said the Manila – Borongan and Borongan ‑ Manila flights will initially operate for two days in a week, specifically on Mondays and Fridays.
Eastern Samar, dubbed by the Department of Tourism as “unexplored paradise,” has a total of one city and 22 municipalities and is home to over 400,000 people.
Local officials said the people of the province who are “hospitable and very gracious hosts” are its best offer to tourists.
They also took pride in the rich history of the province. It was where Ferdinand Magellan, the Spanish navigator who discovered the Philippines, first set foot on Philippine soil – specifically in Homonhon island in Guiuan.
The province is also popular among international and local surfers. The Calico-an island, also in Guiuan, is reportedly a favorite destination among surfers.
“We are already part of the international surfing community. In October, we are hosting an international surfing competition,” said Evardone.
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