A lookback at the quadjet era of Philippine Airlines

July 10, 2019, was the final curtain call of an era in Philippine Airlines, the generation of the quadjet engine aircraft in the airline’s fleet. They flew their Airbus A340-300 with registry RP-C3441 to Orlando before being transferred to its new owner, Plus Ultra Lineas Aereas of Spain. The final departure at 1:15 pm marks the end of an age when PAL had aircraft which utilized four jet engines in its fleet. It is time to look at the quadjet era of Philippine Airlines.

Philippine Airlines have been using 4-jet engine aircraft, otherwise known as the “quadjet” since 1962 before having its present fleet of twin-jet engine aircraft all the way in its fleet.

Douglas DC-8-53

Philippine Airlines entered the jet age with its first Douglas DC-8-53, leased from KLM Royal Dutch Airlines. The first DC-8 was named “Sampaguita,” which flew long-range routes. Using 4 Pratt & Whitney JT3D-3B engines, the DC-8-53 had a range of 10,843km, which PAL used for its transpacific and European flights. Its first transpacific flight was on June 20, 1952.

Douglas DC-8-63

In 1972, PAL decided to increase its capacity for transpacific flights. Hence, the airline took two DC-8-63s, which are longer by 11.7 meters than the DC-8-53. Using the same engines as the 50 series, the 63 series had a range of 7,400km due to its higher capacity. PAL started phasing out DC-8s after the order of the mighty Boeing 747-200 in 1979.

Boeing 747-200

In 1979, Philippine Airlines took delivery of its very first Boeing 747-200B, otherwise known as the “Jumbo Jet.” This replaced the DC-10s in the transpacific routes. PAL took in 17 of these 747-200 series. What made this aircraft iconic was the introduction of the “Skybeds.” These are not business class seats that can lie flat, but beds in the upper deck section of the 747, exclusive only to first-class passengers. 

The 747-200s equipped with the Skybeds were assigned on flights to the United States and Europe. This feature revolutionized long-haul air travel, giving birth to the lie-flat / full-flat seats we see today. The 747-200B can fly non-stop from Manila to the United States west coast.

Boeing 747-400

In November 1993, Philippine Airlines took delivery of its Boeing 747-400 with then Philippines President Fidel V. Ramos from Seattle, Washington, to Subic International Airport. This aircraft became the flagship of PAL for many years. PAL had 5 of these aircraft, 4 747-400 and 1 747-400M, known as a “combi” due to its flexibility to be converted into a full freighter if needed. The last 747-400 flight was on September 1, 2014, eventually replaced by the world’s largest twin-engine aircraft, the Boeing 777-300ER.

Airbus A340

It was in 1996 when Philippine Airlines embarked on a modernization program where they purchased 33 new aircraft, one of which was the Airbus A340. The airline took in two types, the A340-300 and A340-200, where the latter was leased from Cathay Pacific. After the financial crisis, which caused PAL to shut down and resume operations later on temporarily, they stayed with 4 Airbus A340-300s. Later on, PAL acquired six more A340s formerly owned by Iberia Airlines. The A340 was Airbus’s very first quad-jet aircraft. It shares the same frame as the twin-engine Airbus A330. 

All Philippine Airlines A340s were replaced by the twin-engine, more modern, and fuel-efficient Airbus A350-900. The last A340 to remain in the fleet was RP-C3441, which was used only as a spare aircraft until its final retirement. Last July 10, 2019, C3441 took off to Orlando, the USA, for its transfer to a new owner, bringing an era of quad jets in PAL’s storybook to an end.

Today, Philippine Airlines uses twin-engine aircraft, including the Boeing 777-300ER, Airbus A350-900, Airbus A330-300, Airbus A321NEO, Airbus A321CEO, and Airbus A320.