Even if the business environment remains unstable, flag-carrier Philippine Airlines is optimistic about soaring to greater heights, thanks to its reinforced operational strength.

In Wednesday's interview on Straight Talk, DAILY TRIBUNE's online program, PAL president and COO Capt. Stanley K. Ng said the Lucio Tan-led air carrier has been developing innovative solutions to overcome challenges. "Being in the airline industry is tough, I would say. Anything that happens in the world always affects the airlines. Let's say, for example, the global pandemic, the geopolitical tensions always affect fuel prices," Ng said.

"So fuel is one of the most volatile commodities that we have today, and that takes almost 40 percent of our operation costs that prompts fares to go up — that's a challenge," he said.

Easing brain drain

According to Ng, supply chain and workforce issues brought about by the pandemic also affected PAL's operations.

"It is very important to address the problem of manpower because we have a healthy population, and that demographic in the Philippines is quite good. We have a lot of workforce, but the problem is that we can't see this in the aviation industry because the competent and qualified ones usually get poached by other airlines, other countries," Ng explained.

To help resolve the so-called "brain drain," Ng said PAL has partnered with the Department of Migrant Workers to enforce a training program to "replenish the balance."

"The Philippine Airlines aviation school, which I went to, suspended operations because of the pandemic, because there's no demand. But I would say it's one of the best in the world. I would proudly say that. Even the CEO of Malaysian Airlines graduated from that school, from Philippine Airlines," Ng said.

Financial strength

As PAL equips its workforce to meet international standards, it is also working to ensure its financial capacity can keep pace with the changing landscape.