PAL launches 12 new routes

MANILA, Philippines - National flag carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL), jointly owned by taipan Lucio Tan and diversified conglomerate San Miguel Corp. (SMC), is set to acquire four new Airbus aircraft in preparation for the possible lifting of the ban on local airlines to fly to Europe.

PAL president and chief operating officer Ramon S. Ang said in an interview with reporters that the airline’s board of directors approved the purchase of four new Airbus A340-300 to be used for its flights to 12 new routes.

“Yesterday our board approved the acquisition of four new units of Airbus 340-300 in preparation for long haul going to Europe,” Ang said.

Ang also said  the carrier is set to mount flights to new locations in Australia, China, Malaysia, and the Middle East, and to a prime local tourist spot, Batanes.

Ang said PAL will start flying to Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) on May 2; to Darwin, Brisbane, and Perth (Australia) on June 1; Guangzhou (China) on June 2; Abu Dhabi (UAE) on Oct. 1; Dubai (UAE) on Nov. 1; Doha (Qatar) on Nov. 1; and Riyadh, Jeddah, and Dammam (Saudi Arabia) on Dec. 1.Manila to Basco, Batanes flights, meanwhile, will begin on May 1.

Ang said the country’s current good economic conditions are among the factors behind PAL’s aggressive expansion of routes.

With the wider route network, Ang said foreign tourists and business travelers can fly to Manila, enjoy the Philippines for a few days, or connect directly to PAL’s other Asian, Australian and North American destinations.

Since the entry of SMC, PAL has embarked on a massive refleeting program aimed at acquiring 100 new aircraft to replace its existing fleet.

PAL entered into a $7 billion contract with EADS Group in August last year for the acquisition of 54 Airbus aircraft consisting of 34 A321ceo, 10 A321neo, and 10 A330-300s and another $2.5 billion to exercise an option to acquire 10 more A330 aircraft last September.

Ang said PAL would likely accept the delivery of 21 new aircraft this year that would boost its $1.7 billion revenues for its fiscal year ending March 31 by as much as 25 percent.

“With the arrival of the additional 21 aircraft this year, we believe our sales revenues should increase by at least 25 percent,” he stressed.

The PAL chief executive said the airline is confident that it would return to profitability next year after cutting its losses by half this year as the new fuel efficient aircraft would translate to lower fuel as well as operating and maintenance costs.

Just like the Aquino administration, Ang is confident that the ban imposed by Europe and the US preventing local airlines from flying and mounting additional long haul flights would finally be lifted within the year.

“We hope we can soon fly to Europe,” he said.

Representatives from the US Federal Aviation Authority (US FAA) and the European Union are expected to visit the Philippines within the next two months to look into the country’s aviation safety standards.

It would be recalled that the 27-member European Commission decided in April 2010 to impose a ban Philippine carriers from European airspace for the failure of CAAP to reform the country’s civil aviation system.

The European Union used findings the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) of the United Nations as basis to ban Philippine carriers from operating in the continent.

This after the US FAA downgraded the safety rating of CAAP in 2008 to category 2 from category 1 upon the recommendation of ICAO. Category 2 indicates that the FAA had assessed that the Philippines’ civil aviation authority had failed to comply with ICAO safety standards for the oversight of air carrier operations.