Flag carrier Philippine Airlines will begin operating direct nonstop flights between Manila and Brisbane from March 27, giving passengers the convenience of a shorter flying time of fewer than seven hours, compared to the current one-stop service of over nine hours with a stopover in Darwin.
The Manila – Brisbane nonstop flights will operate four times weekly, utilizing the 254-seater Airbus A340 aircraft initially, and PAL’s brand new Airbus A321 NEOs aircraft later in the first half of 2018. The A321 NEO is the longer-range version of the popular A321, outfitted with full-flat business class seats and entertainment systems.
PR 221 leaves Manila at 11:30 pm every Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday and arrives in Brisbane at 9:20 am local time the following day, every Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday. Return flight PR 222 departs Brisbane at 11 am local time (Thu/Sat/Sun) and touches down in Manila at 5 pm on the same day.
Effective May 1, PAL will operate the fourth weekly frequency every Tuesday. PR221 leaves Manila at 12:55 am (Tue) and arrives in Brisbane at 10:45 am local time on the same day. Return flight PR222 departs Brisbane at 12 pm local time (Tue) and touches down in Manila at 6 pm on the same day.
This is the latest move of PAL to convert one-stop flights to nonstop services for the convenience of the travelling public. In 2017 alone, the flag carrier launched nonstop flights to Toronto, Canada; Auckland, New Zealand; Doha, Qatar; Kuwait City, Kuwait; and Jeddah, Saudi Arabia by eliminating the en-route stopovers in Vancouver, Cairns, Abu Dhabi and Dubai respectively.
With the removal of the Darwin stopover by March 25, PAL will temporarily suspend its flights to Darwin, considering that a stand-alone Manila-Darwin service would be uneconomically sustainable. The airline will revisit this decision in the near future as market conditions improve. In the meantime, PAL will continue expansion to other key Australia destinations as it assigns more of the new A321NEOs and the new-cabin Airbus A330s to Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane.
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