PAL MOUNTS SPECIAL FLIGHTS TO CANADA – Canadian Ambassador-designate Peter MacArthur, Canadian Political Officer Warren Mucci, and PAL President and COO Gilbert Santa Maria are shown posing on April 14, 2020 at the NAIA Terminal 2 with the crew of one of the three flights that ferried Canadian nationals back home.
By EMMIE V. ABADILLA
Flag carrier Philippine Airlines mounted three special flights on Tuesday to ferry some 936 Canadian citizens caught in different parts of the country stranded when the government implemented the enhance community quarantine (ECQ) in Luzon on March 16.
In coordination with the Canadian Embassy in Manila, PAL earlier mounted sweeper flights to Davao, Iloilo, Bacolod, Puerto Princesa and Cagayan de Oro to bring the Canadian nationals to the hub in Manila.
PAL used two Boeing 777s and an Airbus 350 for the flights to Toronto and Vancouver in Canada and arrived on April 15.
PAL President Gilbert Sta. Maria expressed his appreciation to all crew members of these special flights for answering the call of duty.
A week ago PAL sweeper flights also gathered stranded British nationals in various parts of the country and brought them to Manila and ferried them to London at the request of the British Embassy.
Meanwhile, PAL continued to mount all-cargo flights to bring medical supplies from overseas and to domestic destinations. The latest of these flights was chartered by the Philippine National Red Cross on April 14 to bring COVID-19 testing kits and other supplies from Changsha, China to the Philippines.