The Philippine Airlines, Inc. (abbreviated PAL), also known historically as Philippine Air Lines, is the national airline of the Philippines. It is the first commercial airline in Asia and the oldest of those currently in operation.
Modernization of PAL started during APO's regime. Yan ang tatak Marcos! Angat tayo sa Asya!
Philippine Air Lines, is the national airline of the Philippines. It is the FIRST commercial airline in ASIA and the oldest of those currently in operation.
When President Ferdinand Marcos declared martial law in 1972, he implemented a one-airline policy. PAL was the lone surviving airline, absorbing AirManila and Filipinas Orient Airways. On March 10, 1973 PAL was re-designated as the national flag carrier.PAL continued its expansion with the arrival of its first Douglas DC-10 in July 1974.
Three years later, the Philippine government re-nationalized PAL, with the Government Service Insurance System holding a majority of PAL shares. In 1979, the Boeing 727, the Boeing 747-200B and the Airbus A300B4, dubbed the "Love Bus", joined the PAL fleet, while the PAL DC-8 fleet was retired.
In 1975 Philippine Airlines was headquartered at the PAL Building in Makati City.
Between 1979 and 1981, as part of a comprehensive modernization program led by then-PAL President Roman A. Cruz, PAL built a series of mammoth aviation-related facilities around the periphery of the MIA. These included the PAL Technical Center, the PAL Inflight Center, the PAL Data Center and the PAL Aviation School.
On April 2, 1982, a PAL Boeing 747-200B arriving from San Francisco via Honolulu became the first aircraft to dock at the new 800-million peso Terminal 1 of Manila International Airport. PAL would later strengthen its cargo-handling capability by building a dedicated cargo terminal building adjacent to the MIA passenger terminal and installing cargo-refrigeration equipment in 1983. The new facilities, which catered mainly to international cargo services, enabled PAL to become a fully equipped cargo handler. Services to Paris and Zürich began in November 1982.