MANILA, Philippines - National flag carrier Philippine Airlines Inc. (PAL)is increasing the number of flights to Hawaii and Guam starting October.
The airline currently flies three times a week between Manila and Honolulu as well as between Laoag and Honolulu via Manila. Starting Aug. 1, the number of fights would increase to five times a week.
On the other hand, PAL currently flies five times a week between Manila and Guam. Starting Oct. 26, the national flag carrier would fly daily to Guam.
The US Federal Aviation Administration (US-FAA) upgraded the country’s aviation safety rating back to Category 1 after the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) last April 9.
Currently, PAL operates a total of 26 weekly flights to the US, with frequencies to Los Angeles, San Francisco, Honolulu and Guam.
PAL president and chief operating officer Ramon S. Ang earlier said PAL is deploying its fleet of six newly - acquired Boeing 777-300ER aircraft worth $1.2 billion for its long-haul flights to the US.
With this, passengers can now enjoy non-stop flights to Los Angeles and San Francisco aboard new aircraft equipped with the most modern cabin and state-of the-art amenities, including lie-flat beds in business class.
“This latest development allows us to deploy our modern and fuel-efficient Boeing 777-300ER fleet to the US, and enables us to explore new destination opportunities in one of the Philippines’ largest passenger markets,” he added.
For its flights to Honolulu and Guam, PAL would continue to utilize new wide body Airbus A330-300s and single-aisle A320-200s.
Apart from ushering a new era in the flag carrier’s trans-pacific service, Ang said the upgrade would also allow PAL to explore possible airline partnerships with foreign carriers in order to maximize its growth potential.
Since the entry of SMC in April 2012, PAL embarked on a massive re-fleeting program involving the acquisition of 100 aircraft. It entered into two separate Purchase Agreements with Airbus in August and September of 2012.