PAL to fly non-stop from Mla to Brisbane

Flag carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) will start operating direct non-stop flights between Manila and Brisbane, Australia in March.

In a statement yesterday, PAL said it would begin the non-stop service on March 27, a move which would allow passengers to have shorter flying time of less than seven hours compared to the current one-stop service of nine hours 20 minutes with a stopover in Darwin.

By having a direct nonstop service from Manila to Brisbane, PAL would be temporarily suspending flights to Darwin citing that a standalone Manila to Darwin service would be uneconomically sustainable.

“The airline will revisit this decision in the near future as market conditions improve,” PAL said.

PAL’s Manila to Brisbane non-stop flights will use the 254-seater Airbus A340 aircraft initially.

Within the first half of the year, PAL would start utilizing the brand new Airbus A321 NEOs, the longer-range version of the popular A321, with full-flat business class seats and entertainment systems, for the flights.

Flight PR 221 will leave Manila at 11:30 p.m every Wednesday, Friday and Saturday and arrive in Brisbane at 9:20 a.m. local time the following day, every Thursday, Saturday and Sunday.

Return flight PR 222, meanwhile, will depart Brisbane at 11 a.m. local time on Thursday, Saturday and Sunday, and touchdown in Manila at 5 p.m. on the same day.

By May 1, PAL said it would operate the fourth weekly frequency every Tuesday.

Flight PR 221 will leave Manila at 12:55 a.m. and arrive in Brisbane at 10:45 a.m. local time on the same day.

Return flight PR 222 will depart Brisbane at 12 noon local time on Tuesday and be in Manila at 6 p.m. on the same day.

“The non-stop service is expected to boost travel and tourism on the increasingly popular route that links the Philippines with the commercial center of Queensland and gateway to the spectacular beaches, theme parks and lush rain forests of the Gold Coast,” PAL said.

Given PAL’s direct nonstop service, the carrier is hopeful Queensland-based Australians would consider holiday trips to the Philippines.

The Manila to Brisbane service is PAL’s latest move to convert one-stop flights to a non-stop service to better serve travelers.

Last year, PAL launched non-stop flights to Toronto in Canada, Auckland in New Zealand, Doha in Qatar, Kuwait City, and Jeddah in Saudi Arabia by eliminating the stopovers in Vancouver, Cairns, Abu Dhabi and Dubai, respectively.