PAL books P256 million profit in July

MANILA, Philippines – Flag carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) was in the black anew for the month of July as it continued to reverse losses booked last year on the back of higher passenger and cargo volume as well as better operating efficiency.

PAL president and chief operating officer Ramon S. Ang said the company registered a net profit of P256 million in July reversing the P327 million net loss booked in the same month last year.

Ang traced the airline’s improving bottom line to higher passenger load factor, increasing cargo volume, and improved operating efficiency through lower maintenance cost for its aircraft.

“We expect this momentum to carry on,” he told reporters.

Parent firm PAL Holdings Inc. was back in the black in the first quarter of its fiscal year ending June as it booked a net income of P489.2 million, a complete reversal of the P475.1 million net loss recorded in the comparable period last year.

On the other hand, revenues rose 5.8 percent to P20.783 billion in the first quarter of its 2012 fiscal year from P19.641 billion for the first quarter of its 2011 fiscal year on the back of higher passenger traffic.

The net loss of PAL Holdings jumped 40.7 percent to P3.7 billion for its fiscal year ending March this year from its previous fiscal year’s net loss of P2.63 billion.

The airline is aggressively pursuing its modernization program wherein it intends to acquire 100 new aircraft to beef up its existing fleet of 39 planes.

It inked a $7-billion contract with Airbus for the purchase of 54 aircraft comprising of single aisle A321s and widebody A330-300s, the first batch of which would be delivered early next year.

The A321s would be used to enhance the airline’s product offerings on domestic and regional routes while the A330s would serve regional routes and longer range services to the Middle East and Australia.

Furthermore, the company is still in talks with other aircraft manufacturers including Boeing for the acquisition of 46 more aircraft.

The introduction of the B777-300ER aircraft type is PAL’s current initiative for modernizing its wide body fleet. Four Boeing 777-300ER aircrafts are scheduled for delivery in 2013 and 2014.

PAL currently maintains and operates 39 aircraft comprising of five Boeing B747-400s and three B777-300ERs as well as four Airbus A340-300s, eight A330-300s, 15 A320-200s, and four A319-100s.