Cebu Pacific reported flying 2.2 million passengers in June 2025, marking a 7.9% increase compared to the same month last year. Despite the growth in passenger numbers and seat capacity, the airline’s seat load factor (SLF) dipped slightly to 87.5% from 88.3% year-on-year as capacity expansion outpaced demand growth.
Domestic travel remained a key driver of Cebu Pacific’s performance, with domestic passenger numbers growing by 7.3% compared to June 2024. This was supported by a 6.8% increase in available seats, yielding an impressive SLF of 92.1% — highlighting the continued strong demand for inter-island connectivity across the Philippines.
On the international front, Cebu Pacific recorded a robust 9.7% year-on-year increase in passenger traffic for June 2025, bolstered by a 14.2% expansion in available seat capacity. However, this rapid capacity growth led to a 3.1 percentage point decline in load factor, settling at 76.1% for the month.
For the first half of 2025, Cebu Pacific has transported a total of 13.9 million passengers, representing a significant 20.8% surge compared to the 11.5 million carried during the same period in 2024. Of this figure, 10.4 million were domestic passengers, reflecting a 20.4% growth, while international passengers reached 3.5 million, a 22.3% increase. Overall seat capacity expanded by 20.6% to 16.3 million seats, with an average SLF of 85.4% across its network.
“Despite the earlier onset of the academic calendar — moving the start of classes from late July last year to mid-June this year — passenger traffic and seat load factors remained resilient. Domestic demand remained strong shown by its 92% load factor while international traffic grew by over 9% as we invested in connecting cities outside Manila to more international ports. For the first half of 2025, our load factors have increased despite seat growth of more than 20%. This reflects the continued strength of air travel demand within our network. Capacity for the second half of June was reduced due to the commencement of the leaner season. This also aligns with ongoing proactive management of engine and supply chain issues and as such we would expect capacity growth levels to stay at similar levels through the third quarter before rising again in the fourth quarter,” according to Xander Lao, President and Chief Commercial Officer of Cebu Pacific.
Lao noted that Cebu Pacific’s load factors have improved during the first half of 2025 despite a more than 20% growth in seat capacity, underscoring the sustained demand for air travel within the carrier’s network. He also explained that capacity for the latter part of June was intentionally scaled down in anticipation of the traditionally leaner travel season and to align with the airline’s ongoing efforts to manage aircraft engine and supply chain challenges.
Looking ahead, Lao indicated that Cebu Pacific expects capacity growth to remain steady through the third quarter before ramping up again towards the end of the year.
Cebu Pacific continues to position itself as a key player in the Philippine aviation sector, leveraging its extensive domestic reach and expanding international footprint to sustain growth and meet the evolving travel needs of Filipino and regional travelers.