PAL seeks government OK for revival of India flights

MANILA, Philippines — Flag carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) has sought regulatory approval to launch direct flights between the Philippines and India.

In a petition, PAL had asked the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) to give it additional entitlements to mount direct flights to India, a plan that has taken a backseat for more than a decade now.

PAL is tapping the Philippines-India Air Services Agreement in putting up the new flight, as the airline builds up its international reach with its expanding fleet.

The air services agreement allows Philippine and Indian carriers to operate as many as 28 flights weekly between Manila and New Delhi. On top of this, the deal provides unlimited frequencies to smaller airports in both countries.

Flag carrier Air India is currently the lone player operating in the Philippines-India corridor. In 2025, the airline started flying between Manila and New Delhi, and the service has been upgraded to a daily flight from a weekly connection.

For PAL, the opportunity to fly to India will scale up its international coverage, supported by the acquisition of new aircraft for domestic, regional and transpacific flights.

PAL was supposed to launch India flights in 2024, but the airline encountered a shortage of jet engines powered by Pratt & Whitney, limiting its capability for route expansion.

Now, the airline owned by tycoon Lucio Tan is better equipped capacity-wise, as it manages 83 aircraft in its fleet with more units arriving through 2029.

PAL is receiving four more Airbus A350-1000s for the rest of the year, increasing its A350 fleet to six. The airline will also land three more next year to complete its order for nine A350s.

Likewise, PAL will land 13 A321neos through 2029 to expand its fleet for domestic and regional flights. The airline is also eyeing to procure more long-range aircraft as reported by Bloomberg.

Competition is also heating up in the foreign markets that PAL specializes in, such as in the US, so the airline is trying to keep up by hiking its flight capacity.

By March 2027, American carrier Delta Air Lines is launching direct flights between Manila and Los Angeles, a corridor that has long been practically monopolized by PAL.