PAL adjusts Manila-London schedule for passenger convenience

MANILA, Philippines – Philippine Airlines Incorporated (PAL) announced Monday, June 1, that it has adjusted its flight schedule to London – its only European destination to date – from early morning Manila departure to early afternoon.

Based on its current summer schedule, Flight PR 720 now departs Manila at 1 pm every Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday and arrives at London Heathrow at 9 pm.

The return service, PR 721, now departs London 10:50 pm and arrives in Manila at 8:05 pm the following day.

The adjusted operating hours for Manila-London route would also optimize connectivity across the legacy carrier’s growing network, PAL president Jaime Bautista said.

Bautista said the schedule change has allowed passengers from PAL’s various domestic and regional points, whose flights typically reach Manila in the morning, to expediently connect to its principal European service, as well as experience a full day’s stay in the British capital for business or leisure.

The flag carrier said that it operated a total of 10,948 roundtrip flights and served about 3 million passengers in the first quarter of 2015.

In a statement early May, PAL Holdings, Incorporated said that it registered a net income of P3.79 billion ($85.06 million) for the first quarter of 2015, a huge comeback from the P923.74 million ($20.73 million) net loss incurred in the same period last year.

Increase in passenger traffic after new international destinations were opened boosted PAL’s net income for the first quarter of the year.

The expansion in domestic route network following an enhanced commercial arrangement with PAL Express also buoyed PAL’s growth for the same period.

PAL returned to New York on March 15, with service via Vancouver. Several domestic routes were added to the network such as thrice weekly flights to Tablas in Romblon, and the reopening of the Cebu hub. – Rappler.com

$1 = P44.55