PHILIPPINE AIRLINES A330 BUSINESS CLASS 🇵🇭⇢🇦🇺【4K Trip Report Manila to Sydney】Unacceptable!

What's it like to fly on Philippine Airlines in Business Class aboard an Airbus A330? Check out this 4K Trip Report & Flight Review to see if your next Philippine Airlines flight might also be a complete dumpster fire!

🚨 Note, the correct score is 53/100, the scoring card incorrectly displays 10/20 for Food & Fees score, which was meant to be 08/20. Also, as of June 2023, PR is no longer using Terminal 2 for International Flights.

🎥 In This Video:
-Manila Terminal 2 Impressions
-Manila Transit Experience
-Mabuhay Business Class Lounge
-Philippine Airlines Route Map
-A Bit of History, The Skytrax Curse
-Boarding & Full Seat Tour
-Business Class Cabin
-Spool up, Take off & Landing
-Flight Stats
-Two Full Meal Service
-Seat, IFE, Lights, Wifi Malfunction
-Unacceptable Service
-Arrival into Sydney (Beautiful!)

💰 VENMO Tip Jar: @kevin_tfft

💰 Flight Fare
Fare Paid: $568.30 USD (KUL-MNL-SYD)
Class: Busines Class
Inclusions: Seat Selection, 40kg Check in Baggage, 7kg Carry on (not enforced)

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⏰ Typical Posting Times:
8/9:00 (US-EST), 14:00 (UK), 18:30 (India), 20:00 (VN), 23/00:00 (AEST)

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↪ Video Chapters ↩
0:00 Intro
00:26 Boarding Pass Flight Info
00:57 The Manila Transit Experience
01:25 Terminal 2 Airside
02:02 Mabuhay Lounge Tour
02:55 Philippine Airlines Route Map
03:48 Busy Terminal, Boarding Begins Soon
04:18 Our A330 & Flight Stats
05:03 Stepping On Board
05:20 Cabin First Impressions & Layout Graphic
05:56 Full Business Class Seat Tour
08:07 Preflight Service
08:17 Safety Video & Push Back
08:35 Malfunctioning Light & Taxi
09:23 Spool up & Take off
10:16 Our Route to Sydney
10:26 In Flight Comforts
10:58 Malfunctioning In Flight Entertainment
11:20 Malfunctioning In Flight Wifi
11:35 Dinner Service Begins, Full Menu
11:46 Full Dinner Meal Service (nearly inedible)
12:53 Bathroom Amenities
13:04 Problems with Purser & Service & Seat with No Power
13:30 Seat in Full Flat Mode
14:26 Breakfast Meal Service
15:14 Incredible Approach into Sydney
16:00 Landing & Taxi to Gate, Aircraft Spotting
16:54 Deplaning & Arrivals
17:26 The Flip Flop Score

Music featured in this video is licensed under an Artlist Unlimited License.

This is NOT a promotional video. I pay for all of my flights and hotels (and I always tell you how much!) so I can be as honest and impartial as possible. I do not receive any special treatment that wouldn’t otherwise be publicly accessible, in fact, the hotels and airlines have no idea about my visit and that's the way I like it!

#philippineairlines #businessclass #tripreport

[tfft]

🚨 Reply from Philippine Airways 🚨

Somewhere in the comments below you will find a comment that was posted on the video quite quickly after it was published from the PAL Youtube Channel. Since then, today (26/07) I also received an email from a 'Customer Relations Officer' from a generic PAL email address which very similarly to the comment they left on the video, appologized for each problem during the flight item by item, but it was all in a very, generic corporate format. They also asked for my specific booking details and offered me compensation in the amount of... wait for it... 2, 000 Mabuhay Miles for the poor experience. While I do give them credit for reaching out in any capacity (it's more than most airlines do...), the 2, 000 miles offer is comical. This is the text of my reply:

"Thank you very much for the email. I am not seeking any sort of compensation for my experience, so the 2, 000 miles will not be necessary. Might I suggest though, that your team reevaluate your compensation and service recovery metrics as 2, 000 Mabuhay Miles for such a poor experience is almost insulting. I assure you, this is not a ploy for a higher offer, even if you offered 1, 000, 000 Miles, as I said I am not seeking anything so I would not accept, I am just suggesting for future guests who may deserve such compensation. Thank you."

[andrewtheogre]

This, in my humble opinion, is how an airline flight review should be. Straightforward, to the point descriptions, great editing and honesty. Loved it, I salute you sir.

[jacobvids]

I've been secretly saving money to surprise my wife with a business class trip to Manila on Philippine Airlines. I'm glad I saw this video and avoided a massive disappointment.

[mgt]

This is a good review. People like you keep airlines' standards in check, and if they dont't keeo up with passenger expectations based on their own promises they'd lose to the competition. Their executives should take a hit and sacrifice their bonuses for the survival of the company at least for the meantime to allow their operations to recover from Covid's effects.

[JDere]

Your critique of the PAL is on the spot. Let me add some other woes we experienced on PAL's 777-300er. We recently flew PAL business class LAX-MNL, R/T on April 2023. We had a family emergency the PAL had the only direct/nonstop flight to MNL. The A330 is head over heel better than their 777-300. There's no space at all on the 777-300 business class seats to put accessories such as cellphone or IPAD. The seats are 3" narrower, and it's configured 2-3-2 across. Worse part of the seat is the angled bed that leave your feet dangling half way to the floor. On the return flight, we encountered turbulence 3 hours out of Manila and didn't smooth out until we reach Seattle. The extended foot pedal part of the bed flops up and down during most of the flight. Getting rest during the entire flight? Fat chance. They didn't bother to serve the mid-flight meal due to the turbulence. My wife's IFE does not work. The FA reset twice and gave up. LAX-MNL portion, five business class passengers had their cellphone slipped from the arm rest and got stuck underneath the seat, my included. They had to call maintenance personnel to come onboard to take the seats apart to get the phones back. All flight info, health certificate, and immigration data are loaded on the phone app. You can't leave the plane without it. We arrived MNL on Terminal 1 and departed on Terminal 3. The business class lounge on terminal 3 is a hole in the wall. It's smaller than my kitchen, few seats and fewer snacks. I thank the receptionist for the privilege of use of their toilet and left. The lounge absolutely have no redeeming value. Service onboard is like the tale of two cities. LAX-MNL: Food and Service were excellent. MNL-LAX: Food and Service were Mediocre. FAs pretty much stick by themselves throughout most of the flight. Positive point: The champagne and red wine were great!!!

[rachelehrenberg]

My Filipina step mom used to say, "we are a very inconsistent people...300 years in a convent and 75 eating hot dogs. A reference to the Spanish colonization and the American one. My experiences reflect yours precisely. For every honest and friendly taxi driver, flight attendant or front desk staff there is the polar opposite...often on the same day. Since I am sort of wedded to Star Alliance I usually am on NH or SQ through Manila. Travel to the Philippines is not for amateurs.

[tonqico]

After having recently concluded a trip from Sydney just a few weeks ago, I felt nostalgic about seeing the title of your video. I too got a A330 Business Class but it was from QANTAS, the national carrier of Australia. I have to admit your experience was a far cry from the service I got. The purser and flight attendant on QANTAS was very attentive and they had quite the offering for libations. I really appreciate your honesty and candidness. It helps travelers like me put things into perspective.

[kianakan]

THIS IS THE BEST AND MOST HONEST REPORT ON PHILIPPINE YOU HIT THIS EXACTLY CORRECT! I know this because I fly PAL business class about 7 times a year from Honolulu to Manila. Oh, and by the way, you didn't say the plane registration but I will guess that it is C-8789 and the seat 4A is my (used to be favorite). That light was never fixed, in fact it went on and off my entire 10 hour flight from Manila to Honolulu. Also, the screen didn't work on my flight. The food from Honolulu to Manila is usually ok. The food from Manila to Honolulu is ATROCIOUS! Your food review made me laugh so hard - so true true. Oh, and did you ever get to ride aircraft C-8764?? That aircraft has the old seat configuration 2-2-2 and NO IN FLIGHT SCREEN AT ALL! What civilized international long-haul aircraft doesn’t have a flight entertainment system? … I know.. Philippine Airlines.
I know what you mean about the flight pursers.. some are really lazy and the worse ever, but some are much better. One flight I couldn’t use the bathroom. I really had to use the bathroom ( I am old), but since they didn’t schedule the use by setting a line-up for who is next, I had to “hold it” for hours until landing. THAT’S NOT ALL!! Try going on their website - what a joke! And they’re customer service agents - word of warning - don’t take what they say for the truth. I call them 3, or 4 times and usually get different answers. I have enough miles to fly using miles for the next three roundtrips from Honolulu to Manila and then I am trying a real airlines, Japan Airlines for a trial - I hear JAL is AWESOME! Again, thank you so much for this review. I am definitely a new subscriber due to your quality imagery and great narration. THANKS!

[djbabygggudani]

After watching this review, I will never ever use PR.thanks for this honest review!

[OneJuanWon]

I've been to the Philippines twice, but in my research when planning my trips I saw the unusually high amount of negative passenger feedback from PAL customers. Flying from the west coast of the US, I have opted for EVA Air instead - both experiences were very positive. My destination for each trip was Cebu, I avoided going to Terminal 1 at NAIA for similar reasons I avoided PAL. I find their decision to buy new planes as a way to resolve many of these issues a misguided one, to me it seems a lot of what plagues PAL is the culture of the company from the top down. It doesn't matter how nice/new your planes are, if inefficiencies and poor service abound at every turn, a shiny new airplane isn't going to fix the real problem(s).

[loveaodai]

My experience with Philippine Airline dates back to 1989 where they did something nasty which turned into a very positive memorable experience. The flight was from LA to Manilla then to Saigon. Frankly I don't remember anything about the plane or service from LA except that it was ok. The "nasty" was that the plane from Manilla to Saigon did not hold enough for the number of passengers and so about 30 of us were left to wait all day in a very tired and cranky state in Manilla with little instruction. Toward the end of the day we were notified that Vietnam Airlines which in those days were still known by its Vietnamese name "Hang Khong Viet Nam" name flew in a plane to bring us to Saigon. The memorable aspect was that the plane was a Soviet IL 18 (no NOT Soviet era... 1989 was still the time of the Soviet Union) which was a four engine turboprop which was rather old. Funny... because unlike the PA aircraft I remember everything about that plane including the luggage piled in the back of the plane under netting. To this day that flight was one of the most memorable things I have ever done. That plane sat in a back corner of the airport in Hanoi for many many years but is now gone.

[quattrobajeena]

It's my first time watching your content and I find really clear and comprehensive si nce there are very precise yardsticks that you use in reviewing airlines. I think theyre helpful in setting expectations.

Looking forward for more.

[cawoleff]

Same observation with Flight Crews of PAL not seating on the Galley on our recent flight MNL to DOHA. It was so hard for us to ask for assistance since there was no "call" button to get their attention. We only saw them during food/drinks and warm towel distribution. And I think 1x to check the lavatory near us to replace supplies. No follow up collection of trash after they collected the food trays. They only collected extra trash one time which made our cups and other food plastics piled up. Imagine they have already collected the food tray but since you still have your drinks with you, you didnt give it to them so you can finish it. Remember that they were no where to be found so you can ask them to collect it. Seems like they were all holed up at the back/kitchen. The only time they sat down the crew seat was when it was time for landing. That was so different with other airlines where crews keep on roaming around and checking on passengers. Or just seated on their crew seat near the aisle. I liked the food though since it appeals to my Filipino taste. 😩

[horus]

As a Filipino, I totally agree on this. PR is not worth my money anymore, let alone flying business class with them. I could fly with other foreign airline with the same price but definitely better service.

[kirkkorenko]

I feel your pain. I flew in business class from Manila to San Francisco only to discover that my seat would not go flat so I could sleep. The crew tried to make it work but couldn't. I never like airline food so I make sure to eat a good meal before flying. The purser assured me that I would get extra flight miles for being inconvenienced. Of course that didn't happened. I had my friend in Manila keep trying and finally they gave me the extra miles. PAL has much work to do.

[paulkazzer]

The best part of your videos are you don’t relish having to criticise a subject matter. Rather you objectively point out the problems and hope they can be resolved. Very informative and genuinely good natured. Although gamey ham sounds terrifying 😮

[ejmanansala]

While Philippine Airlines call themselves the "Heart of the Filipino", their post-pandemic service makes them quite an embarrassment for Filipinos. I've been flying on the San Francisco to Manila (and vice versa) route every summer since I was little, so it's hard to see what they've become. Hopefully with United launching their 777-300ER's to Manila from San Francisco, it'll be the final punch to show them that they need to take their operations seriously 🙏

[Isabellacastro-ch]

We flew PR in 2016 and we had great food and inflight service...checkin' out was a breeze and we did'nt mind sitting 18 hours from Vancouver to Manila..We thought, hey, we missed the local foods ( back then, they served 4 awesome main meals and a variety of asian cuisine) and the sweet services of the flight attendant so why not do it this year. Enter 2022, and everything opposites happened..No more warm meals, attendants were super-rude (i got told many times to put my purse up top) and the gates were chaotic, really had horrible experience checking in..Guys, you can also watch Panlasang Pinoy vlogger's review when he spent xmas 2022 in the Philippines and you will get the sense of what I am talking about..In a nutshell, we will not be flying PAL anytime soon unless they've upgraded their services at par with the best airlines out there, e.g. Singapore Airlines. Heck, Japanese flight attendants were way more polite than our own.Just sayin'.

[tboy]

Another great video Kevin! That intro music is always a vibe!

[gilbertlamayo]

I'm a Filipino, but I have avoided flying PR international for 13 years now and counting. The onboard service has gone from bad to worse. The worst? It has recently moved all international flights to Terminal 1. Connecting to a domestic flight at Terminal 2 is another inconvenience. If I were a tourist, I'd rather fly directly to Cebu and avoid PAL and Manila at the same time.