PAL parent capped rocky 2021 profitable anew

PAL Holdings Inc. ended a tumultuous 2021 back in the green and with a promise of a comeback following its airline’s exit from the Chapter 11 bankruptcy process.

Erasing its P73-billion losses incurred the prior year, the Philippine Airlines (PAL) operator said total comprehensive income in 2021 rose to P56.49 billion as consolidated revenues increased by 6.2 percent to P58.7 billion year-on-year.

“The significant increase in revenues was mainly due to the increase in cargo revenues as air cargo has been a vital partner in delivering essential goods since the COVID-19 pandemic,” PAL Holdings said.

Consolidated operating expenses, meanwhile, were lower by 23.3 percent to P62.80 billion last year from P81.84 billion in 2020.

Expenses declined

As demand for air travel failed to pick up amid fresh surges in COVID-19 cases, expenses related to flying operations, aircraft and traffic servicing expenses, passenger service and maintenance declined last year.

“The COVID-19 outbreak and the measures taken by the Philippines and foreign governments have caused disruptions to [Philippine Airline’s] passenger operations, resulting [in the] temporary suspension and limited operations of its flights both for domestic and international routes,” the airline operator said.

Reservation and sales, meanwhile, dipped to P3.16 billion last year from P3.2 billion previously due to travel restrictions. Other income, amounting to P64.39 billion, came from gains from debt settlement and/or condonation.

As of end-December 2021, total assets stood at P193.85 billion while liabilities amounted to P192.16 billion.

PAL Holdings was able to resume trading its shares on the bourse in March after nine months of suspension due to concerns over its 2020 financial report. The Philippine Stock Exchange finally lifted the suspension after it reissued the said report to reflect the progress of the airline’s financial restructuring process.

Philippine Airlines announced last December its exit from a voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy process in the United States as it completed a restructuring plan that eliminated $2.1-billion worth of obligations.

Celebrating Philippine Airlines’ 81 years of operations last month, executives said they were keen on bringing back the passenger traffic in the domestic and international routes while incorporating technology innovations to aid recovery from the pandemic-induced slump.

Philippine Airlines acting president and chief operating officer Stanley Ng also shared plans to beef up the cargo business to expand the airline’s revenue stream.