Guam replaces Honolulu as stop for PAL flights

Philippine Airlines flights to Manila from the US West Coast will make technical stops in Guam instead of Honolulu starting yesterday, the airline said.

The Philippines’ flag carrier said the switch will initially cover its B747-400 flights from Los Angeles and San Francisco but will soon be implemented on its Airbus A340 service from both cities.

The new set-up will allow trans-Pacific passengers 10 hours of uninterrupted time to sleep, dine, read or watch a movie since Guam is farther west than Honololu, the airline said in a statement. Stops in Honolulu occur just five hours into the flight.

The one-hour technical stops are required during certain times of the year, particularly during the winter months of November to March, when headwinds are strong enough to affect aircraft flying westward across the Pacific.

Flights from Manila to the US West Coast are nonstop because they have tailwinds. — AP