PAL bags 2 global awards for successful restructuring

Flag carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) has been recognized by Europe-based international publications for its successful restructuring last year.

PAL said it bagged the Asia Pacific Restructuring Deal of the Year awards from Airline Economics magazine and the AirFinance Journal Deal of the Year award for its pre-negotiated Chapter 11 restructuring agreements in 2021.

PAL said both awards recognized the success of the company’s financial restructuring through a breakthrough series of cross-border agreements, with major aircraft and bank creditors, aviation manufacturers, and other stakeholders.

The deals, coupled with the infusion of $505 million in fresh capital from PAL’s shareholder family, enabled the flag carrier to rebound from the pandemic with reduced debt, additional liquidity, and better-positioned for long-term growth.

“We are grateful for this honor, and we thank the hard work of the PAL team, the all-out support of stakeholders and the determination of our chairman, Lucio Tan to strengthen PAL to meet the challenges of the future,” PAL president and COO Stanley Ng said.

The Airline Economics Aviation 100 Awards recognize resilience and ingenuity in a challenging environment for the worldwide aviation industry.

Airline Economics is the flagship publication owned by Aviation News Ltd. and is dedicated to the commercial aviation finance and leasing industry.

AirFinance Journal Awards 2021, meanwhile, considered 30 categories across several regions.

PAL’s Chapter 11 cross-border restructuring won as the Deal of the Year for the Asia Pacific region.

“We will not rest on our laurels, but we will persevere in our efforts to complete PAL’s recovery and reclaim its place in the aviation world. We dedicate these efforts to our customers and the Filipino people whom we are committed to serve as best as we can,” Ng said.

PAL is embarking on a major network re-expansion to restore more flights and routes as the Philippines and other countries ease travel restrictions and allow for the continued comeback of leisure and business travel.

The airline expects to return to prepandemic levels in its domestic network within the second or third quarter, while continually adding flights on key international routes to the US, Canada, and parts of the Middle East and Asia.

PAL posted a net income of $22.6 million (P1.2 billion) during the first quarter, registering its first positive first quarter results since 2016.