Philippine Airlines Planning Cambodia Flights

Philippine Airlines has just added a new member to its growing family of aircraft with the addition of a brand new A330-300 aircraft from Airbus. This is the first of twenty long-range wide-body aircraft that Philippine Airlines is expecting from the Airbus factory after placing a $9.5 billion order last year, the largest in Philippine aviation history. 

Photo Credit: Gimbellet/FlickRiver

The new aircraft will be flown to Manila in the coming days and will be deployed on the airline's new route to Abu Dhabi as the carrier makes its return to the Middle East on October 1. Philippine Airlines abandoned its Middle Eastern routes several years ago unable to compete with Gulf carriers that receive subsidies on fuel expenses. 

"This is a milestone for Philippine Airlines. We are now starting the next phases of our fleet renewal, anchored on new generation A330-300 aircraft," said Ramon Ang, President of PAL. "This aircraft opens up new frontiers in our rapidly growing networks as well as in service innovations for our passengers. The A330 is earmarked for our Middle East route, which will allow our overseas Filipino workers to fly back to their homeland."

The Airbus A330-300 aircraft features seating for 414 passengers configured in two classes: premium economy and standard economy. Standard economy will have 375 seats while premium economy will offer 39 seats. The aircraft will be powered by Rolls-Royce Trent 772B-60 engines. 

Last year, Philippine Airlines placed an order for forty five A321 aircraft and twenty A330 aircraft to be delivered between 2013 and 2019. With this recent delivery, Philippine Airlines has now accepted delivery of two A321 aircraft and one A330 aircraft. Philippine Airlines expects to receive an additional five A330-300 aircraft before the end of 2013. Each Airbus A330-300 aircraft carries a list price of $239.4 million each. 

PAL's original fleet of eight Airbus A330 aircraft will be transferred to PAL Express to be deployed on mid to long haul routes competing directly with Cebu Pacific. The first PAL Express aircraft will be deployed to Dubai on November 1, nearly one month after Cebu Pacific makes its inaugural long haul flight to Dubai. 

Sourced: Yahoo News.com