Cebú Pacífico

Foundation and growth (1988–2006)

Cebu Pacific was established on August 26, 1988. Republic Act No. 7151, which grants a legislative franchise to Cebu Air, Inc. to operate, was approved on August 30, 1991. The airline began operations on March 8, 1996, with its first flight from Manila to Cebu. Domestic services began following market deregulation by the Philippine government. The airline was subsequently acquired by JG Summit Holdings, owned at the time by John Gokongwei.

The airline temporarily ceased operations in February 1998 after being grounded by the government following the crash of Flight 387 that killed 104, but resumed services later the next month following re-certification of its aircraft. It initially started with 24 domestic flights daily among Metro Manila, Metro Cebu, and Metro Davao. By the end of 2001, its operations had grown to about 80 daily flights to 18 domestic destinations.

In the 2000s, Cebu Pacific was granted rights to operate international flights to the region, including Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, South Korea, Hong Kong, and Guam. International flights were launched on November 22, 2001, with a twice-daily service to Hong Kong. Thrice-weekly flights to Seoul commenced on March 1, 2002, followed by Singapore on October 1. Other regional flights were introduced and suspended later; however, including flights to Singapore (from November 6, 2002, to January 2003) and from Manila via Subic to Seoul (from December 2002) due in part to the effects of the SARS epidemic.

On November 10, 2005, Cebu Pacific launched "Go", a fare discount program that permanently reduced its fares by half. The move was done to increase the airline's revenue by twenty percent. Following this, Cebu Pacific experienced significant passenger growth, hiking up its sales volume by ninety percent. Its president and CEO, Lance Gokongwei, anticipated that with the low fares, air travel would be cheaper than sea travel. He further added that:

This is all about getting people to think about flying. For those who fly today, we would like to encourage them to fly more frequently, and for those who haven’t flown before, we want to welcome them on board and introduce them to air travel.

The airline resumed its Manila–Singapore flights on August 31, 2006, and launched a direct flight from Cebu to Singapore on October 23. It was the first low-cost airline to serve the Cebu-Singapore-Cebu sector, and competing directly with Singapore Airlines subsidiary SilkAir, the only Philippine carrier serving the route for years until Philippine Airlines resumed direct service in 2017. Cebu Pacific's direct Cebu–Hong Kong flights began on October 2, 2006, making it the Philippine carrier to serve the Cebu-Hong Kong-Cebu route after PAL terminated its direct service and began code-sharing with Cathay Pacific on the route. Manila–Bangkok flights were also launched in the same year.

Initial expansion (2007–2011)

In April 2008, Cebu Pacific launched direct flights to its first two destinations in Vietnam: Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.

On May 8, 2008, Cebu Pacific opened Francisco Bangoy International Airport in Davao City as its third hub and launched direct flights from Davao to Singapore, Hong Kong, and Iloilo. In late 2007, Cebu Pacific announced plans to launch non-stop flights to the United States West Coast, Houston, and Chicago by mid 2009.

Cebu Pacific's plans to begin international flights from Clark in 2007 were initially unsuccessful when its request was denied. The nations involved came to an agreement that Cebu Pacific would be only allowed to operate charter flights from Clark to the respective countries' airport(s). Only Singapore initially agreed to allow Cebu Pacific to fly scheduled flights from Clark. After launching flights between Clark and Cebu in 2006, on November 8, 2008, the airline commenced international flights from Clark to Hong Kong, Macau, Bangkok and Singapore, making Clark its fourth hub.

On May 28, 2008, Cebu Pacific was named as the world's number one airline in terms of growth. The airline was also ranked fifth in Asia for Budget Airline passengers transported and 23rd in the world. On November 20, 2008, it started operating direct flights to Japan, starting with Osaka.

In August 2009, Cebu Pacific became the first airline in the Philippines to use social media; the airline created a fan page on Facebook and Twitter. In October 2010, the airline completed an initial public offering of 30.4% of outstanding shares, raising ₱23.3 billion prior to an exercise of an overallotment option. By January 2011, the airline flew its 50 millionth passenger from Manila to Beijing.

Further growth and re-branding (2012–2020)

Cebu Pacific continued its network expansion in the 2010s. Continuing its regional expansion, it launched flights to Siem Reap and Xiamen in 2012. Domestically, it opened two local bases in Kalibo and Iloilo.