Philippine Airlines looks to have brought forward the deployment of its newest aircraft, the Airbus A350-900, on its Manila-London Heathrow route, meaning travellers will be able to experience the aircraft as early as next month.
According to booking information on Philippine Airlines’ official website, the A350 appears as though it will now make its debut on the route on September 15, more than a month earlier than has previously been announced by the airline.
Business Traveller previously reported that the aircraft would be replacing the Boeing 777-300ER that currently flies between Manila and London from October 28.
The switch to the A350 notably means business class passengers will have access to the airline’s newest seat product. This is a variant of the Vantage XL seat from Thompson Aero, which reclines to a fully flat position and offers direct aisle access to all passengers with a 1-2-1 configuration – a step up from the B777-300ER’s 2-3-2 layout.
The 30 seats are 24 inches wide and offer 44 inches of pitch (legroom) when in a seated position, which reclines to form a 78-inch-long bed.
The aircraft also features a premium economy cabin with 24 seats laid out in a 2-4-2 configuration. Each offers 38 inches of pitch, a width of 19 inches and a recline of up to eight inches.
Meanwhile the economy class cabin is laid out 3-3-3 with 33 inches of pitch, 18 inches of width, and six inches of recline. All classes have access to in-flight entertainment screens, in-seat USB power supply and wifi.
Along with its London flights, Philippine Airlines has also announced plans to deploy the aircraft on its soon-to-be non-stop service to New York (JFK).
Travellers flying on the airline’s Bangkok, Melbourne and Sydney routes also appear as though they will be getting the aircraft, albeit on a partial or temporary basis.
Philippine Airlines has six A350s on order in total, with an option for an additional six. The carrier took delivery of its first A350 last month – the first of four expected for 2018 – and expects to receive all six by mid-2019.
