PHILIPPINE Airlines (PAL) yesterday announced the resumption of flights to London in November, two months after the European Union struck the country’s flag carrier off its aviation blacklist (TTG Asia e-Daily, July 11, 2013).
“London will be the first European destination for Philippine Airlines since it was discontinued in 1998,” said PAL president, Ramon S Ang. “We expect a heavy influx of foreign tourists due to rising awareness of the Philippines and the country’s rich tourist attractions.”
PAL’s new 13-hour flights from Manila to London will begin November 4 using Boeing 777-300ER aircraft, flying five times a week on a morning schedule and landing at Heathrow Airport.
PAL also announced it would next work on launching routes to Paris, Rome and Amsterdam, with priority on the latter two.
Arnold Gonzales, sales and PR manager for the Department of Tourism office in Frankfurt, said the sentiment of Europe’s travel consultants selling the Philippines was “one of jubilation” since the lifting of the EU ban.
PAL’s announcements of the new routes were received with some skepticism, especially as it came on the heels of its recent reduction of services to other destinations, including the cancellation of its four-times-weekly service to Perth earlier this month, just three months into its launch.
Steven Slicer, market and product development specialist at New Horizons Holidays in Perth, Australia, wishes PAL had given the route a chance.
“It takes time to put together the contracting, develop the product and print the brochures and advertisements,” he said.
PAL has also reduced services to Abu Dhabi, Riyadh and Dubai planned for launch in 4Q2013, and cancelled the thrice-weekly service to Jeddah planned for February 2014.
