PAL poised to end 2022 in the green

MANILA, Philippines — Lucio Tan’s Philippine Airlines (PAL) looks to close the year in the green after ending the third quarter in profit, pushing onward not only with the reactivation of pre-pandemic flights, but also the opening of new routes.

PAL operator PAL Holdings Inc. reported that it climbed back to a net income of P3.21 billion in the third quarter, from a net loss of P5.28 billion a year ago, riding on the resurgence in demand for air travel to nurse its financials back to the pink of health.

The flag carrier said total revenues almost tripled to P40.4 billion in the July to September stretch, outgrowing its expenses that more than doubled to P35.22 billion.

PAL recorded a profit of P6.76 billion from January to September, reversing the net loss of P21.83 billion during the same period in 2021.

During the nine-month period, total revenues of the flag carrier owned by airline and tobacco magnate Lucio Tan tripled to P97.77 billion, carried mostly by the recovery in passenger bookings.

PAL president and chief operating officer Stanley Ng said that the airline managed to stay in the green for the third consecutive quarter with the help of travelers who flew with the flag carrier.

Ng added that the sustained growth of PAL signifies that travel and tourism in the country are rebounding.

However, the elevated cost of jet fuel remains a persistent concern for everyone in the aviation industry.

“We are thankful for the strong support of our customers, shareholders, partners and personnel that enabled PAL to achieve this third straight quarter of positive operating results in spite of the continuing global economic and geopolitical challenges,” Ng said.

“We at PAL will remain steadfast in carrying out our mission of service, bridging our islands and connecting our homeland with the rest of the world, for the benefit of our tourism, trade and the Filipino people,” he added.

At present, PAL remains to be the only airline flying non-stop flights from the Philippines to North America, particularly to the US and Canada. It also maintains the largest network of flights from Manila to multiple cities in Australia and Japan as well as in the Middle East.

The flag carrier is launching new routes next month from Cebu to Baguio City and Cotabato City as part of its efforts to widen its flight network from outside Metro Manila. In line with this, PAL launched Clark flights to Incheon and Busan to service the demand for links to South Korea.

Last year, PAL filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in a New York court to clear more than $2 billion in outstanding debt in a reorganization that involved decreasing its fleet capacity by 25 percent to 70 aircraft and infusing $505 million worth of debt financing from majority owners.

It exited Chapter 11 proceedings before 2021 ended, committing to raise its flight volumes as border controls were lifted.