Filipinos and foreign businessmen in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) welcomed the recent announcement of Continental Micronesia’s to reinstate the direct Manila-Saipan- Manila routes starting 9 December 2003.

Commenting on this recent development, which the Philippine Consulate General in Saipan has been pursuing for years since the direct route was suspended in 1997, Foreign Affairs Secretary Blas F. Ople said that “it is definitely a big boon to the Filipinos in the region, majority of whom are OFWs who do not possess the appropriate US visa to transit through Guam”.  He further emphasized that facilitation of movement across borders  also enhances trade, people-to-people cooperation, and tourism.

Prior to the September 11 terrorist attacks, the United States government has allowed the Transit Without Visa (TWOV) Program for most of its international ports of entry, including Guam.  The program benefited OFWs who transit through the US for jobs in the CNMI and Canada, including those taking the NCLEX exams for nurses.

On 9 July 2003, as a security measure, the US suspended the TWOV program. Filipinos bound for Saipan without US visa are left with the only recourse of taking a circuitous route through Seoul or Tokyo, for a total of eleven hours flight, compared to the non-stop flight that takes only 3 ½  hours.

The Continental flights will operate on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and will be serviced by Boeing 737-800 jets.  The flight will depart Saipan at 9:10 p.m. and depart Manila at 10:40 p.m. on the same day.

While the direct flights are set to run up to 16 January 2004, the end of the holiday season, Secretary Ople expressed optimism that if there is sustained traffic on the route, it may be extended indefinitely.