Businessman Yao says SEAIR buyout ‘only a matter of time’

CEBU CITY, Philippiens - Businessman Alfredo M. Yao is confident of acquiring SEAIR and merging it eventually with Asian Spirit. "It will be just a matter of time. I’m confident that the deal will push through," he told reporters Wednesday. He added that he was just waiting for one of the owners to come home from the US on the 15th. Mr. Yao was guest speaker in a forum organized by the Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry. He cited technicalities during the talks, as well as the "sentimental value" attached by the owners to the carrier, but declined to elaborate. Mr. Yao said Asian Spirit does not have to buy SEAIR to be able to expand, but the buyout could help them develop more local tourist destinations. Seair, which was formed in 1995 by Iren Dornier, Nikos Gitsis and Tomas Lopez, is the pioneer in providing chartered and scheduled flights to Caticlan near Boracay Island in Aklan, and Palawan. "We can survive without SEAIR. It’s not very critical that we acquire it. If the deal does not [proceed], we will continue with what we have been doing," Mr. Yao said, noting that he had intended to buy SEAIR ahead of Asian Spirit. "The people [at SEAIR] — I have a soft spot for them." With or without Seair, the expansion of Asian Spirit will continue. Mr. Yao said they plan to make Cebu a hub for Asian Spirit’s regional operations, starting with a direct flight between Cebu and Macau. This route is being served by Cebu Pacific, which also has Cebu as one of its hubs. Asian Spirit currently flies to nine domestic destinations from Manila and serves Jolo and Tawi-Tawi from Zamboanga. It also operates three weekly flights between Zamboanga and Sandakan, Malaysia. Mr. Yao said they were on the lookout for more tourist destinations, including the islands of Camotes and Bantayan in Cebu. Although the name Asian Spirit will be retained as the company name to keep its congressional franchise, Mr. Yao said they would decide on a brand for the merged entity. - Marites S. Villamor, BusinessWorld