BOAC, Marinduque -- After almost four years since domestic flights ceased plying the Manila-Marinduque-Manila route, businessmen, and local executives lauded the resumption of domestic flights to this province.Gerry Jamilla, Marinduque’s provincial tourism officer, is optimistic that the resumption of ZestAir’s domestic flights to Marinduque will boost the province’s tourism industry. “With the revived air travel going to and from the province, more tourists can now visit Marinduque. It will now be easier to package tours as travel time is cut short and tourists can stay longer in the province,” Jamilla said. Land and sea travel to Marinduque from Manila via Lucena City in Quezon province usually takes 8 to 10 hours, while air travel would only take 30 minutes from Manila. And with the provincial government’s thrust to go full blast in promoting Marinduque as a must-see tourist destination, coupled with the expected reopening later this year of the province’s premiere exclusive resort, the Elephant Island, Jamilla is hoping that the Marinduque Airport will again be busy with guests. The airport had its last domestic flight in 2004. The Asian Spirit airline used to ply this route but terminated it due to business losses as the number of passengers taking the airplane could not sustain local operations. Carlito Fabaleña, the province’s director of the Department of Trade and Industry, said local businessmen would greatly benefit from the resumption of domestic flights and was expecting that Marinduque would now be more attractive to potential business investors. “The delivery of goods to and from the province will now be faster,” Fabaleña remarked. “Almost all business establishments will gain from this -- from the small sari-sari stores, to grocery stores, courier companies, newspaper dealers and most especially, the province’s butterfly exporters,” he added. Marinduque is known as the butterfly capital of the Philippines as almost 80 percent of the country’s butterfly exports are from this province. A China-made 56-seater MA-60 ZestAir airplane made its initial and probing flight November 15, carrying six passengers going to Marinduque and lifting off with five passengers bound for Manila. Marilou Sto. Domingo Bernales, a businesswoman from the capital town of Boac and the first passenger to book for ZestAir’s initial flight, said traveling to and from Manila would now be more convenient. “Investors will now have easy access to the province,” she added. Rosalie Sulit, a gasoline station owner, can only heave a sigh of relief now that travel time to Manila will be shorter and safer for a business person like her. ZestAir initially scheduled the Manila-Marinduque-Manila flights every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. The plane departs from Manila at 8:40 a.m. and leaves Marinduque at 10 a.m. | 
