Philippine Airlines

Philippine Airlines (PAL; Spanish: Líneas Aéreas Filipinas) is the flag carrier of the Philippines. The airline was founded in 1941 and is the oldest operating commercial airline in Asia. Philippine Airlines launched its first flight on March 15, 1941, using a Beechcraft Model 18 aircraft from Manila to Baguio.^[1]

History

Philippine Airlines (PAL) was established on February 26, 1941, as Philippine Air Lines, following the acquisition of its operational franchise from the Philippine Aerial Taxi Company (PATCO) by a group of businessmen led by Andrés Soriano and Ramón J. Fernández in conjunction with Pappy Gunn.^[1]

Corporate affairs

Philippine Airlines Inc.(PAL) is owned by PAL Holdings, Inc. (PHI) (PSE: PAL), a holding company responsible for the airline's operations. PAL Holdings is part of a group of companies owned by business tycoon Lucio Tan.^[1]

Business highlights

Data before 2014 were excluded from the table as figures before that year were compounded using a different fiscal year period.^[1]

Network

In 1980, Philippine Airlines operated flights to several European destinations, such as Amsterdam, Athens, Frankfurt, London–Gatwick and Rome–Fiumicino. Following the 1997 Asian financial crisis, PAL terminated a number of its long-haul routes. In 1998, Cathay Pacific temporarily operated some of PAL's international services for a 14-day period during the latter's operational shutdown.^[1]

Logo

The Philippine Airlines logo changed several times since the company's founding. Its first logo incorporated a blue oval with "PAL" superimposed in white letters, a four-pointed star with points intersecting behind the "A" in PAL, and a wing whose orientation varied depending on the location of the logo. The wing pointed to the right if located on the left side of the plane, and to the left if on the right side.^[1]

Livery

PAL liveries have undergone many incarnations. The first PAL aircraft bore a simple white-top, silver-bottom livery separated by solid straight cheatlines, with a small Philippine flag superimposed on the tail. The name "Philippine Air Lines" was superimposed on the upper forward portion of the fuselage and the PAL logo was located at the back.^[1]

Frequent-flyer program

Mabuhay Miles is Philippine Airlines' frequent-flyer program. It was established in 2002 after merging all of PAL's existing frequent flyer programs before the Asian financial crisis. Mabuhay Miles are divided into multiple tiers: Classic, Elite, Premiere Elite, and Million Miler.^[1]

Mabuhay Lounge

The Mabuhay Lounge is the airport lounge for Philippine Airlines. These lounges have open bars, food catering, Wi-Fi, and charging ports for personal electronic devices. Mabuhay Miles Elite, Premier Elite, and Million Miler members can use the lounge, alongside Business and Comfort Class (for domestic flights) passengers.^[1]

Cabin

Philippine Airlines currently offers three classes of service: business, premium economy, and economy, depending on the aircraft. Airbus A321s (on domestic routes), reconfigured Airbus A330s, and Airbus A350s offer three classes, while its other aircraft offer two classes. On September 15, 2022, the airline rebranded its premium economy service to Comfort Class for its domestic flights.^[1]

Location

Philippine Airlines is based in Philippines.^[2]

Online presence

Philippine Airlines works in airlines and travel. Its website is philippineairlines.com.^[2]