Philippine Airlines Set to Land in Brazil via Los Angeles
Philippine Airlines announced today that it is in the process of making preparations to launch flights to Sao Paulo, Brazil via Los Angeles. The President of Philippine Airlines, Ramon Ang, said that the airline is already processing regulatory approvals and that they are awaiting clearance to launch the route.
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Photo Copyright: Juan Natividad/PPSG |
Philippine Airlines had originally indicated that it was
contemplating transiting via the Middle East or Africa enroute to Brazil. But
it is likely that the airline discovered that the economics simply wouldn't
work. Los Angeles is a natural fit as the airline's routes to North America are
the most profitable and given the significant population of Filipinos in
California and the freedom to travel to Brazil without a visa, this is a route
that might see success with minimal risk to the airline. This is in addition to
the other United States-Brazil traffic that the airline may be able to capture
from other airlines. At present, the only operator offering a direct service
from Los Angeles to Sao Paulo is Korean Airlines. However, American Airlines is
set to launch its own direct Sao Paulo route from Los Angeles on November 21,
2013.
Philippine Airlines aims to launch service to Brazil by
2014. Meanwhile, the airline is focused on saving $400 million in fuel and
maintenance costs upon completion of its re-fleeting program.
With the modern, fuel efficient aircraft in place, Ramon Ang
is hoping to reduce fuel and maintenance costs down to 40% of operating
revenues. Current levels range from 55% to 60%. This would effectively amount
to a savings of $400 million or 20% of the airline's average annual revenues.
Philippine Airlines will be launching service to three new
destinations in Australia this June along with Guangzhou in China.
There are rumors in Brazil that the they will fly via Johannesburg.
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