Cebu Air says it’s prepared for a slow travel recovery

Cebu Air, now operating at a quarter of its capacity, is prepared for a slow and longer recovery in travel demand, VP Alex Reyes said. International demand may take longer to return, while domestic travel could come sooner, he said. Local bookings have spiked as the Southeast Asian nation eased travel restrictions, he said. Cebu Air, a unit of JG Summit Holdings, raised about 12.5b pesos ($257m) from a stock rights offering and got a 16b-peso loan from a group of local banks. “That’s going to give us working capital to move forward no matter how long it takes to recover,” Reyes said. The airline, in a stock exchange filing, said the 12.5b pesos it raised from the rights offer will be used to repay debt and advances. As much as 3.91b pesos has been allotted for aircraft operating lease due this year, and the rest is for other purposes including refunding passengers should cash flows from operations become insufficient.<br/>