PHILIPPINE AIRLINES (PAL) will expand its Manila-Seattle service to five weekly flights starting Nov. 25 to meet rising travel demand, the airline announced Thursday.

The number of flights will increase from the current thrice-weekly service, PAL said in a media release.

The airline will introduce new Tuesday and Thursday departures from both Manila and Seattle beginning Nov. 25, resulting in a five-times-a-week service operating every Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Sunday.

“Our decision to increase frequencies to Seattle highlights the importance of the US market to the Philippine Airlines global network, and particularly the strategic value of Seattle as a gateway — not only to Washington and Oregon, but also to cities across the United States that we can now serve through our ongoing partnership with Alaska Airlines,” said PAL President Richard Nuttall.

“We are strongly focused on developing this growing market to help Americans plan vacation trips to the Philippines and other Asian countries, to create more opportunities for businesses to expand commercial activities, and to enable Filipino Americans to reunite more often with their families in the home country,” he added.

PAL said the planned expansion aims to meet increasing travel demand to and from the US West Coast and beyond, as part of a long-term investment by the company to foster business and tourism flows between the US and the Philippines.

With this increase, PAL now serves eight destinations in the US and Canada, offering nonstop flights to New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Vancouver, Toronto, Honolulu, Guam, and Seattle.

“Moreover, the additional flights bring a substantial boost in cargo capacity — up to 40 tons per week — between Manila and Seattle. This extra uplift connects to various US states via interline airline and trucking partnerships, further supporting the growing trade between the US and the Philippines,” the company said.

PAL operates the Seattle service with Boeing 777-300ER long-range jetliners, which accommodate 370 passengers, including 42 seats in business class and 328 in economy class. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera