Philippine Airlines confirms A321 retrofit, network expansion plans

Philippine Airlines has confirmed that it will begin cabin retrofit works on its Airbus A321s in May, as it unveils network expansion plans at its Cebu hub. The national carrier does not indicate how many A321s will undergo the retrofit, except to state the narrowbodies, which will serve short-haul international routes, will have new seats, in-flight entertainment, and Wi-Fi. PAL had 22 A321s in operation as at 31 December 2024, including four that operate with low-cost domestic unit PAL Express. The aircraft are configured with 199 seats. The retrofit comes as the airline reportedly faces delays in new aircraft deliveries, including the first of nine A350-1000s it ordered in 2023. According to media reports that cite airline executives, PAL’s first A350 is being delayed by three months and will only be delivered in the fourth quarter of the year. The airline’s orders for 13 A321s are reportedly also delayed beyond 2026. PAL also disclosed an acquisition of two mid-life Boeing 777-300ERs, purportedly to mitigate the delivery delays, and these will operate on its North American flights. Separately, the airline is expanding its capacity for its Cebu operations amid expectations of strong travel demand in the summer. It will increase domestic frequencies by about 10% by April – to about 287 weekly flights – and up-gauge several flights from De Havilland Dash-8s to A321s.<br/>