Philippine Airlines orders 9 Airbus long-haul jets in recovery push

Philippine Airlines on Wednesday said it had ordered nine long-haul, wide-body jets from Airbus as the Southeast Asian carrier beefs up its fleet following a turbulent pandemic that forced it into bankruptcy protection in 2021. As the company and the wider travel industry recover from coronavirus-induced turmoil, Philippine Airlines said in a statement that the nine A350-1000 jets will be operated on nonstop flights from Manila to North America, including the US East Coast and Canada. It also secured rights to buy three more "to allow future expansion to new long haul destinations," including Europe. A Philippine Airlines spokesperson declined to give the value of the deal. In 2018, an A350-1000 cost an average of $366.5m, based on list prices. Airbus has since stopped publishing list prices. Airbus will deliver the jets starting from the fourth quarter of 2025 until 2027, Philippine Airlines said. The airline ended 2022 with 81 aircraft, according to PAL Holdings, its Manila-listed parent. "The A350-1000 combines greater range capability with the higher capacity we need to serve future demand," said Philippine Airlines President Stanley Ng, son-in-law of tycoon Lucio Tan, who controls the flag carrier. "It's the perfect aircraft to enable PAL to meet its expansion plans in a sustainable way, while offering passengers the highest levels of onboard comfort." Philippine Airlines reported an operating income of $297.2m last year, the first positive full-year performance since 2019. Consolidated revenue more than doubled to $2.57b after it flew 9.3m passengers, up 214% from 2021. Philippine Airlines struggled during the height of the pandemic. In 2021, the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in New York, a move that facilitated debt and fleet reduction. It exited the court-backed restructuring later that year.<br/>