Philippine Airlines (PAL) has issued a clarification regarding recent reports about its potential fleet expansion, stating that no concrete plans have been finalized for a large-scale aircraft acquisition.
In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange on July 31, 2024, PAL Holdings, Inc. addressed claims made in media reports suggesting the airline was considering a multi-billion dollar purchase of up to 100 new aircraft.
“The statement quoting the President and COO of PAL may have been misinterpreted considering that the acquisition of the planes has not been discussed by the Board. We cannot therefore confirm the above-quoted statement,” said Ma. Cecilia L. Pesayco, Corporate Secretary of PAL Holdings, Inc.
The clarification comes in response to news articles citing PAL President and Chief Operating Officer Stanley Ng, who reportedly discussed plans to order 60-70 new aircraft. When combined with existing orders, this would have potentially brought the total number of new planes to around 100.
While PAL has not denied interest in fleet expansion, the company emphasized that no formal decisions have been made regarding large-scale aircraft purchases.
The airline currently has confirmed orders for 13 Airbus A321neo narrow-body aircraft and nine A350-1000 wide-body jets, with an option for three additional A350s.
However, Ng told BusinessWorld that the airline is in talks with financial institutions to secure approximately $500 million in funding to exercise its options for three additional Airbus A350 aircraft.
“These three that we ordered are just options. It is for our buffer,” Ng said, adding that PAL is now ordering a total of 25 aircraft.
Deliveries for the A350-1000s are currently scheduled until 2027 and will be operated on nonstop services from Manila to North America, including the East Coast and Canada.
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