MANILA, Philippines - National flag carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL), jointly owned by taipan Lucio Tan and diversified conglomerate San Miguel Corp. (SMC), is set to fly to Haneda starting March 30 making it the airline’s fifth gateway to Japan.
PAL president and chief operating officer (COO) Ramon S. Ang said the airline would serve as the exclusive operator on the Haneda-Manila route.
“This route forms part of PAL’s network expansion aimed at providing our passengers more and better choices,†Ang stressed.
PAL becomes the biggest Philippine operator to and from Japan with 47 flights a week. It intends to fly to Haneda twice a day complementing its thrice a day service to Narita, thus providing better options and convenience for travelers to and from Japan.
Haneda would become PAL’s fifth gateway to Japan after Narita, Fukuoka, Osaka, and Nagoya. It currently operates 21 weekly flights to Narita, five times a week to Fukuoka, seven to Nagoya, and seven to Osaka.
Haneda, also known as Tokyo International Airport, is one of the two premier airports servicing the Greater Tokyo Area. It is considered the world’s most slot-restrictive airport and a prime business hub.
Haneda airport, which is around 30 minutes from the Tokyo metropolis, has one domestic and two international passenger terminals and connects conveniently to the Tokyo monorail.
Along with the route expansion, Ang said PAL is upgrading its inflight menu with the introduction of Bento Box meals on all flights to and from Japan.
Ang said the flag carrier is expanding its presence in Japan in response to a strong market demand, even as PAL continues to reinforce its warm and hospitable inflight service.
He pointed out that Japan provides a significant passenger market to the Philippines being the third biggest source of tourist visitors to the country.
In 2012 alone, Japanese tourist arrivals reached 412,000. Japan is also a prime tourist destination for Filipinos, with its trend-setting culture, superb cuisine, and historical sites.
PAL is in a middle of a refleeting program aimed at acquiring 100 new aircraft. So far, it has ordered 65 Airbus aircraft worth close to $10 billion from EADs as it is gears up for additional long haul flights to Europe as well as the US once the country’s Category 2 rating is upgraded.
Last September, Japan lifted a ban preventing airlines from the Philippines from mounting additional flights after both governments signed a new air service agreement increasing the number of flights and allowing unlimited flights to points outside Manila and Haneda.
The new agreement increased the number of flights between Manila and Narita to a total maximum 400 per week from the previous 119. It also allowed 14 flights per week between Manila and Haneda as well as unlimited air traffic rights between points in the Philippines except Manila and points in Japan except Haneda.
Japan has been imposing restrictions on local carriers from the Philippines preventing them from mounting additional flights after the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) raised several safety security concerns since 2008.
However, ICAO lifted the remaining significant security concerns after Philippines through the CAAP passed the audit conducted from Feb. 18 to Feb. 22 paving the way for the series of upgrades.