Philippine Airlines returns aircraft, defers deliveries

Philippine Airlines (PR, Manila Ninoy Aquino Int’l) returned two unspecified aircraft to lessors in July 2021 and deferred all deliveries of new aircraft initially scheduled for 2020-2021 to the second half of the decade, it said in a quarterly financial report.

“Philippine Airlines’ aircraft delivery schedule was revised to align with the forecasted recovery of travel demand. 2020 and 2021 aircraft deliveries were postponed and rescheduled for delivery in 2026-2030,” the carrier explained.

The ch-aviation fleets advanced module does not show any aircraft removed from Philippine Airlines’ fleet in 2021, although 34 out of its 61 aircraft are currently in storage. The carrier’s firm order book comprises thirteen A321-200Ns.

In July, the carrier also requested advanced clearance from the Department of Finance to return one of its leased A321-200s, imported to the Philippines via a duty-free regime. The carrier currently operates eighteen A321s, including thirteen leased from Avolon (three), DVB Bank Aviation Asset Management (three), Deucalion Aviation Funds, ECAF I (one each), FLY Leasing, Haitong UniTrust (two each), and ORIX Aviation (one).

Meanwhile, the airline continues to explore filing for Chapter 11 restructuring in the United States despite the withdrawal of one of a potential participant bank.

The struggling carrier first touted the idea of applying for restructuring in a foreign jurisdiction in May 2021. In late June, The Philippine Daily Inquirer confirmed the airline was targeting the US as a jurisdiction. However, while the idea remains on the table, it has hit roadblocks. Earlier in August, Flightglobal reported that the application had been postponed due to a lack of agreement with one of the banks set to participate in the refinancing of the carrier.

The airline lost PHP16.6 billion pesos (USD332 million) in the first half of 2021, an improvement compared to the PHP20.7 billion (USD414 million) loss for the same period in 2020.