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The Philippines and Iceland signed an initial air services agreement allowing each country up to seven passenger and cargo flights per week
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The agreement was signed following the Philippines-Iceland Air Negotiation Talks held August 18-19 in Reykjavik
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The seven weekly flights may be operated through direct or connecting services
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The agreement is expected to support tourism, trade, investment and people-to-people exchanges between the Philippines and Iceland
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The deal forms part of the Philippines’ efforts to expand international air connectivity and develop new aviation markets, particularly in the Nordic region
The Philippines and Iceland have signed an initial air services agreement that allows each country up to seven passenger and cargo flights per week.
The agreement was signed following the Philippines-Iceland Air Negotiation Talks held on August 18-19, 2026, in Reykjavik, Iceland.
Signing the agreement were Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) assistant secretary Edgar Badajos for the Philippines and Sigríður Eysteinsdóttir, director and chief negotiator for Air Services Agreements of Iceland’s Ministry for Foreign Affairs.
The Department of Transportation (DOTr) said in a social media post this agreement is part of the Philippine government’s initiative to broaden international collaborations and enhance the nation’s transportation infrastructure under President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s administration.
“This agreement will serve as the foundation for our future air transportation relationship and will provide our airlines with a framework to explore new opportunities for connectivity between our two countries and, ultimately, between our respective regions. Today, we are not simply concluding our first air negotiations. We are opening a new chapter in Philippine-Iceland relations in the field of civil aviation,” Transportation secretary Giovanni Lopez said.
Eysteinsdóttir welcomed the agreement and thanked both sides for the productive negotiations.
“I would like to thank you all for the warm, friendly, and constructive spirit in which our discussions have taken place. We are very pleased with what we have achieved together. Our discussions have helped us to better understand each other’s priorities and find a way forward,” Eysteinsdóttir said.
Under the agreement, the Philippines and Iceland will each have rights for seven flights per week, or one flight daily, covering both passenger and cargo services.
The traffic rights provide airlines from both countries greater flexibility to establish and develop services based on market demand and commercial viability.
The agreement is expected to create opportunities for air services linking the Philippines and Iceland either through direct operations or connecting flights, potentially supporting tourism, trade, investment and people-to-people exchanges.
DOTr would continue to coordinate with its Icelandic counterpart and other aviation stakeholders to ensure the effective implementation of the agreement and to expand air services between the two countries.
The agreement is part of the Philippines’ continuing efforts to expand international air connectivity and open new aviation markets, particularly in the Nordic region, to support passenger mobility, business, tourism and economic activity.
Lopez led the Philippine delegation, which included DFA secretary Ma. Theresa Lazaro, Philippine ambassador to Norway Enrico Fos and officials from the DFA, DOTr, Department of Labor and Employment, Civil Aeronautics Board, Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines, Philippine Embassy in Oslo and the Philippine Honorary Consul to Iceland.
The Icelandic delegation included Kristin Helga Markúsdóttir, deputy director general of the Icelandic Transport Authority, and Vala Hrönn Viggósdóttir, legal adviser of the Ministry of Infrastructure.
