Kathrine Frich
Airline schedules can change quickly, but few expect an entire carrier to disappear overnight.
When demand dries up, the consequences can be immediate for both companies and customers.
That is now the reality for thousands of passengers after one airline abruptly shut down operations.
Flights grounded
Royal Air Philippines has formally entered liquidation, becoming the first airline to cease operations this year.
According to the Daily Express, the carrier cancelled all of its commercial flights earlier this month.
The decision brought more than two decades of operations to an end. Every scheduled service was withdrawn at once, leaving customers scrambling for alternatives.
Passengers affected
On January 4, the airline confirmed it was cancelling all commercial flights. The move affected between 3,000 and 4,000 travellers who had bookings between January and March 2026, the Daily Express reported.
A notice on the airline’s website said it was working to provide refunds and expressed hope of resuming flights at an unspecified point in the future.
Demand dries up
Royal Air, owned by Cambodia-registered Lanmei Group, has struggled to sustain its low-cost model as passenger numbers fell sharply.
Its core market of Chinese and South Korean tourists declined steadily.
The downturn became clear in the first nine months of 2025. International passenger numbers dropped to 51,800, while domestic traffic fell by 63 percent to just 38,800.
Brief rebound
The collapse followed a short-lived expansion. In 2023 and 2024, passenger numbers had climbed to around 100,000 and then 116,000.
That momentum failed to carry into 2025, reversing gains made during the airline’s brief recovery period.
From charter to budget
Royal Air Philippines was founded in 2002 as a charter service.
It later shifted to a low-cost carrier model in 2018 and operated its first passenger flight between Cebu and Macau.
Based in Manila, the airline received its licence to operate commercial flights in 2017 and expanded its network rapidly.
Once far-reaching
At its peak, Royal Air served destinations including Cambodia, China, South Korea, Hong Kong and Taiwan.
The airline is owned by Lanmei Group, also known as the Lancang-Mekong Group, a private enterprise backed by Chinese civil capital and chaired by former Shenzhen Airlines president Li Kun.
Sources: Daily Express
