Philippine Airlines Launches Flights to Doha, Qatar

Philippine Airlines continued its expansion into the Middle East yesterday with the introduction of new non-stop flights between Manila and Doha. The national flag carrier will be operating five weekly flights between the two cities. 

Copyright Photo: Angelo Agcamaran/PPSG

The new service links the two capital cities every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. It is operated by an Airbus A330-300 aircraft. According to Philippine Airlines, the new route will serve the 200,000 overseas Filipinos that currently reside in Qatar.

"PAL continues to grow its routes in the Middle East by opening a new route to Doha in Qatar," said PAL President Jaime Bautista. "Our overseas Filipino workers in Qatar can now enjoy that distinct Filipino service that will bring them much closer to home."

The A330 aircraft that will operate the route is configured with Economy and Premium Economy seating. Philippine Airlines is also offering passengers thirty minutes of complimentary in-flight wireless internet and up to 15mb of video streaming to their personal devices through the myPAL player.

Round-trip tickets aboard Philippine Airlines to Doha start at US $760. Last June, Cebu Pacific launched direct service from Manila to Doha with two weekly flights. However, introductory sale fares started at just Php 888 one-way. 

Philippine Airlines last opened new flights to the Middle East this past January when it introduced new service to Jeddah and Kuwait. Meanwhile, Qatar Airways is planning to expand its presence in the Philippines when it launches new direct flights from Doha to Cebu. There is currently no confirmed start date for the new route. However, it is expected to launch sometime in 2016 with a Boeing 787-8 aircraft.