PAL starts daily flights to Melbourne in November

August 28, 2026 | 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines — Flag carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) is ramping up its  flights to Melbourne to a daily schedule, anticipating higher demand for Australia services in the fourth quarter.

PAL yesterday said it is preparing for flight demand to surge during the Christmas season despite inflationary pressures hounding both airlines and travelers.

As such, PAL is raising its Melbourne service to a daily flight by Nov. 19, from the current five times a week, to support the booking spike during the holiday stretch.

Flight PR 209 departs Manila at 8:20 p.m. to arrive in Melbourne at 7:30 a.m. the next day. The return flight, PR 210, leaves Melbourne at 9:20 a.m. to land in Manila at 2:25 p.m.

PAL picked the following schedules to give passengers flexibility in planning onward journeys. Filipinos landing in Melbourne are provided the entire day to take a connecting flight to another local city if they have to.

Australians arriving in Manila also have the afternoon and evening to proceed to their connecting flight, with PAL flying direct trips throughout the Philippines and across Asia-Pacific.

With the upgrade to a daily frequency, PAL’s Melbourne flights are also expected to boost cargo exchange between the Philippines and Australia to the benefit of exporters.

Among local carriers, PAL offers the widest network between the Philippines and Australia, with daily flights to Brisbane and Sydney and weekly services to Perth.

PAL will mark the 55th year of flying between Manila and Melbourne on Sept. 10, making it one of the airline’s longest-running services. Since launching in 1971, the flight has become an important line of connectivity for migrants and tourists between the Philippines and Australia.

November will also be a busy season for PAL’s expansion efforts. The airline is putting up direct flights between Manila and Chicago starting Nov. 9, boosting its North American network, which is one of its revenue drivers.

PAL is leaning on long-range flights, particularly to the US, to improve revenue, as it hurts from booking decline on the domestic segment, with Filipinos preserving cash to cope with inflation.

To date, PAL operates the widest overseas network among Philippine carriers, reaching 40 cities in Asia, Australia, the Middle East and North America.