Philippine Airlines said it will boost its operations at its hubs in Davao, Cebu and Clark, with the scheduled arrival of 15 new aircraft in 2018 and another six planes in 2019.
PAL, an internationally-certified 4-star airline, announced a multi-hub expansion strategy to improve domestic and international connections, while spreading the benefits of tourism and commercial activity to the various regions in Mindanao, the Visayas and Luzon.
It said new routes and hikes in flight frequencies were being introduced as the flag carrier was set to accept delivery of five additional Next-Generation Bombardier Q400s and sixnew Airbus A321neos starting May 2018, along with four Airbus A350-900 trans-oceanic aircraft starting June 2018.
“We are no longer just a Manila-centric airline,” said PAL president and chief operating officer Jaime Bautista during a recent press briefing at Davao City for Davao, Cebu, Clark and Manila media.
“Our new aircraft and our new hubs are a winning combination that will help expand our market reach both domestically and worldwide. This is imperative for a global airline, and we must sustain and build on our hard-won 4-star rating,” he said.
PAL said the 2018 expansion would include the following new routes: Davao-Siargao, starting with four weekly flights on March 25; Manila non-stop to New York (John F. Kennedy Airport) on Oct. 28;
Manila non-stop to New Delhi and Mumbai (Bombay) in India by the fourth quarter of 2018; and Manila to Sapporo (Chitose) in Japan’s northernmost island of Hokkaido, by the fourth quarter of 2018.
PAL said the new routes to India were in response to the call of Trade Secretary Wanda Corazon Teo for a direct link to India, a potentially rich producer of future tourist visitors for the Philippines.
PAL said it was also assessing the request of Teo to launch international routes directly from Davao International Airport, possibly to Bangkok or a point in Japan.
Meanwhile, PAL said it would increase flight frequencies to the following routes: Cebu-Siargao, twice daily by end of April; Davao-Tagbilaran, daily beginning March 25; Davao-Clark, daily later in 2018; Cebu-Bangkok, daily beginning March 25; Cagayan de Oro to Clark, daily later this year; Cebu-Busuanga (Coron), three daily flights by April 26; Clark-Busuanga (Coron), five daily flights by April 26; and Cebu-Clark, 10 weekly flights by April 28,
PAL said it would upgrade to widebody A330 or A340 aircraft on more selected Manila-Cebu and Manila-Davao flights.
Additional frequencies between Manila and Dumaguete, Cagayan de Oro, Iloilo, Cebu, Puerto Princesa and Bacolod, will start in April and May, it said.