Philippine Airlines PR 103 & PR 102 LAX-MNL-LAX

[PR744]

Hi! Here is a brief trip report on my flight to the Philippines during the Christmas season. It was my first time to go to the Philippines and also my first time on Philippine Airlines. I heard many mixed reviews about them and was excited to experience them. So here it is!

Flight: Philippine Airlines PR 103
Sector: LAX-GUM-MNL
Seat: 35A Fiesta Class
Aircraft Boeing 747-400 Reg: N752PR
December 16, 2008
433 Passengers
Captain Name: Richard Ortega
First Officer: Joannis Inopea
Purser: Joy Ongtiaobok





Flight and Cabin Crew Arriving




Boarding:


Airshow at LAX:






Welcome Speech video:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6494913186610543804&hl=en

Takeoff Video:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7983172087260760932&hl=en

After about 30 minutes after takeoff, dinner service commenced.


Seafood in Black bean sauce with egg fried rice. Very Good!


Mid-flight:


Airshow: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yy_z4Zy1je0

Breakfast served before landing in Guam: Chicken Tocino with mushrooms, eggs, tomato, and garlic fried rice. Also good!


Landing in Guam:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=966641084705612821&hl=en

Takeoff in Guam:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8571114572615874499&hl=en

Refreshments were served after takeoff which consisted of pound cake, muffins, and drinks. After refreshments the Fiesta Boutique was presented.



Nearing Manila:


Landing in Manila:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1024798604174505060&hl=en

Disembarkation:


Conclusion: This flight on PR was very good. The flight attendants were kind and always had a smile on. The food was very good and top notch. However, the seats were really outdated and falling apart. The seat pitch is a little tight but was comfortable. Overall, I would give PR a B+, only thing missing is PTVs. Part 2 soon to come(N751PR).

[PR744]

PART II

Flight: Philippine Airlines PR 102
Sector: MNL-LAX
Seat: 43A Fiesta Class
Aircraft: Boeing 747-400 Reg: N751PR
January 2, 2009
415 Passengers
Captain Name: Valentino Gambalan
First Officer: Jose Mapua
Purser: Dianne Kintanar

Waiting for Boarding:


Our cabin crew going through security:


Flight and Cabin Crew boarding:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sdj_hpPkODU&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zd0Z6HMye2k

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUr1YQcllCI

Boarding:




Boarding Video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ctppvMAvC3Q&feature=related

Philippine Airlines' New AVOD System:




AVOD's Remote Control:






Legroom: Much more pitch than on N752PR








Captain Gambalan's Welcome Speech:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6060461002549754336&hl=en

Our purser doing her pre-flight crosscheck:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0WKEKEHGNk&feature=related

Welcome speech and safety demonstration:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6432442715883873420&hl=en

Does anyone know why flight attendants have to perform it manually on N751PR? Also, why aren't the overhead and bulkhead monitors not working?

Takeoff:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-2358515405357686271&hl=en

Dinner Service:




Dinner: Chicken Adobo and Aligue fried rice


Beef Goulash with Pasta


After about 4 hours the sun began to rise:


Breakfast: Corned beef with eggs, tomato, and garlic fried rice


Entire Fiesta Class cabin after breakfast. Taken from door 5L.




Airshow: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V7FWXXXsvls



Descent Speech:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iwqaC1EWk9E

Landing at LAX:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8aqIx593FRQ

Conclusion: This flight on Philippine Airlines was the best one so far. The seats were comfortable and spacious, the AVOD was incredible, the food was again top notch, and the flight attendants were very friendly and professional. The only thing that bothers me on this flight is how the airshow on the AVOD is very basic. If it had the airshow from N752PR, then the AVOD would be much better. In the end, I would give this flight an "A". I would like to praise Dianne Kintanar for her exceptional service and professionalism throughout the flight. This flight crew was however was more senior than PR 103 but provided welcoming and warm service. I would like to thank the crews of PR 103 and PR 102 for a wonderful flight. Thank you for making my first flights on Philippine Airlines and to the Philippines enjoyable and memorable. I would love to fly on Philippine Airlines again!

[rohank4284]

Excellent Flight Review

Hello,

Nice job on the excellent flight review! The photos were excellent, the videos were good, and you added some nice details about the flight.

Philippine Airline looks like an amazing airline. The AVOD looks to be excellent, and the food looks amazing and you got a huge breakfast, compare this to BA and LH, which just offer a croissant with butter and jam, a few slices of cheese, yogurt, and orange juice.

Just one question: what was the duration of your flight(s)?

You did an excellent job on this flight review and welcome to the JP.net forums, hopefully we will see you around often.

Regards,

Rohan

[PR744]

^Sorry i forgot to add the flight times. PR 103 was approximately 15 hrs. and 45 minutes since we arrived 45 minutes early in Manila. PR 102 was 11hrs. and 11min. We were 19 minutes early into LAX. This proves PAL does not neccessarily mean Plane Always Late.

[rohank4284]

^Sorry i forgot to add the flight times. PR 103 was approximately 15 hrs. and 45 minutes since we arrived 45 minutes early in Manila. PR 102 was 11hrs. and 11min. We were 19 minutes early into LAX. This proves PAL does not neccessarily mean Plane Always Late.

Thank you for adding the information and wow, those were some long flights. You did an excellent job on your first flight review and I hope to see more great reviews in the future.


Regards,

Rohan

[a330340watcher]

Nice photos and nice TR. It's too bad you used a cabin with an older configuration on PR103 which is a longer flight as it involved a stopover at GUM.

[AA 1818]

Nice photos and nice TR. It's too bad you used a cabin with an older configuration on PR103 which is a longer flight as it involved a stopover at GUM.

Is the stopover in Guam necessary for fuel, or were there passengers that embarked/disembarked at Guam?

Also, can someone explain why PAL can use the 747 on these routes, but not newer 773s? I understand that they are under sanctions (the correct term is lost, to me, at the moment), but what are the stipulations?