PAL Holdings Reports P9.5B Earnings for H1 2024 Amid Fleet Expansion

PAL Holdings Inc., the parent company of Philippine Airlines (PAL), experienced a 30% drop in earnings in the first half of 2024, primarily due to increased expenditures from its fleet expansion and operations.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange on Friday, PAL Holdings revealed a total comprehensive income of P9.5 billion, a decrease from P13.5 billion in the same period last year. Despite this, total revenues increased by 4% to P90.9 billion, up from P87.4 billion year-on-year.

Expenses surged to P80.3 billion, compared to P69.8 billion in the first half of 2023.

“Philippine Airlines remains on track in its transformative growth strategy as we deliver a more efficient airline offering quality service to fulfill our mandate as the Philippines’ flag carrier and only full-service airline with the largest network,” stated Lucio Tan III, PAL Holdings president and chief operating officer.

In the first half of 2024, PAL Holdings expanded its network by 11%, carrying 7.9 million passengers across international and domestic routes, marking a 13% year-on-year increase. This growth aligns with the post-pandemic surge in air travel, with Ninoy Aquino International Airport reporting a 13% rise in passenger volume.

“As the industry adjusts to a re-balancing between demand and capacity and continues to face cost challenges, we are implementing a disciplined investment plan to upgrade our fleet and continue our digital transformation so that we can serve our passengers better,” said Stanley Ng, PAL president and chief operating officer.

Ng also highlighted the milestone expansion of the Mabuhay Miles lifestyle program, which now boasts over six million members.

Passenger revenues saw a 2.05% rise to P79.84 billion in H1 2024, compared to P78.24 billion the previous year, driven by higher passenger volume despite a drop in average fare per passenger. Cargo revenues increased to P4.12 billion from P3.81 billion, while ancillary revenues grew by 28.56% to P6.90 billion, largely due to higher ticket rebooking and seat upgrade volumes.

The airline’s flying operations expenses rose by 13.09% to P42.91 billion, up from P37.94 billion a year earlier, reflecting a 7.10% increase in fuel consumption due to the increased number of flights.