Philippine Airlines (PAL) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Airbus for the purchase of nine A350-1000s.
The A350-1000 will be operated on nonstop services from Manila to North America, including to the East Coast of the US and Canada.
The new aircraft will join two A350-900s already in service at the airline and currently flying to destinations in North America, Asia and Australia. As with the A350-900, the PAL A350-1000s will be configured in a premium layout with separate Business Class, Premium Economy and Economy Class cabins.
Captain Stanley K. Ng, President and Chief Operating Officer of Philippine Airlines, said that the range of the A350-1000 would enable the airline to fly nonstop transpacific and transpolar routes in both directions all year. These will include some of the longest commercial flights in the world, such as those linking the Philippines with New York and Toronto. With an expanded A350 fleet, PAL will have the ability to once again provide a direct link from the Philippines to Europe.
Virgin Atlantic Airways announced today that it will be suspending services between London Heathrow and Lahore and Islamabad.
A Virgin Atlantic spokesperson said: “As we continue to ramp up our flying program in 2023, we’ve taken the opportunity to review our entire network and decided to make a few changes.”
“Following this review, it is with regret that we’ve taken the difficult decision to suspend our services between London Heathrow and Pakistan. Since commencing operations in December 2020, we have been proud to offer choice for customers travelling between London and Manchester in the UK, and Islamabad and Lahore in Pakistan. During that time, we have also provided important cargo capacity, as well as delivering vital medical supplies.”
Virgin Atlantic will continue to operate services between London and Lahore until May 1, 2023 and between London and Islamabad until July 9, 2023.
Background
Virgin Atlantic launched flights from London Heathrow to Islamabad and Lahore and Manchester to Islamabad in the height of the pandemic in December 2020
The routes were launched when many destinations, including the US, were closed for travel. Our Pakistan routes were targeted to capture the visiting friends and relatives (VFR) market which was one of the first sectors to recover.
As Virgin Atlantic ramps up its flying programme for 2023, the airline is reviewing its network and ensuring resources are utilised in the most optimal way to achieve operational resilience.
The final Pakistan flight dates are:
LHR-LHE VS364 departs 30th April 2023 at 21:55
LHE-LHR VS365 departs 1st May 2023 at 12:25
LHR-ISB VS378 departs 8th July 2023 at 21:55
ISB-LHR VS379 departs 9th July 2023 at 12:40
Our teams will communicate with any affected customers due to travel after these dates to share their options which include rebooking (if applicable) or a full refund. Customers who have booked with a third party travel agent should contact them to discuss their options.
Top Copyright Photo: Virgin Atlantic Airways Airbus A350-1041 G-VLUX (msn 274) LHR (Keith Burton). Image: 960046.
