Philippine Airlines (PAL) ended 2018 with a consolidated total comprehensive loss of P2.8 billion, 38.3% less than its comprehensive loss of P4.6 billion in 2017.
Consolidated revenues for 2018 amounted to P150.4 billion, up 16.2% over 2017’s P129.5 billion, PAL said in a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange.
Passenger revenues, which contributed the biggest share to the total at 85.4%, reached P128.410 billion, up 16% from P110.636 billion in 2017, as a result of the increase in volume of passengers carried and number of flights operated.
PAL operated 112,072 flights and carried 15.9 million passengers in 2018 vis-a-vis 103,362 flights and 14.5 million passengers in 2017.
Cargo revenues likewise improved 21.7% to P10.217 billion from P8.397 billion in 2017 due to higher volumes and improved yields. In 2018, PAL carried 758 tons of cargo (396 tons domestic and 362 tons international) per day.
Ancillary revenues also rose 14.8% to P11.564 billion from P10.07 billion as a result of the growth in the volume of passengers.
But consolidated expenses also went up by 17.8% to P155.7 billion from P132.2 billion in 2017, attributable mainly to higher flying operations, aircraft and traffic servicing, maintenance and reservation and sales expenses.
The increase in flying operations expenses was due to fuel costs and lease charges. Fuel consumption increased by P13.9 billion from P38.4 billion in 2017 to P52.3 billion in 2018 mainly because of jet fuel prices escalating from an average of $75.59 per barrel in 2017 to $94.38 per barrel in 2018.
As of end-2018, PAL’s fleet consisted of 97 owned and leased aircraft, and its route network covered 39 destination points covering the Philippines and overseas.
In February last year, international air transport rating organization Skytrax certified PAL as a 4-star airline, making the carrier the first and only airline in the Philippines to earn such a rating.
PAL earlier said it will continue to focus on its next major goal, which is to enhance its position as the country’s only full-service airline with a global network and to eventually earn the highest recognition with a 5-star certification.
