Billionaire Lucio Tan Lends To Philippine Airlines Amid Rising Losses.

Tycoon Lucio Tan lent Philippine Airlines as the country’s flag sank deeper into the red, with a record net loss of 73 billion pesos ($1.5 billion) for all of 2020.

Support from the company’s majority shareholder, as well as deferred payments to lessors. Lenders, and other suppliers, will help airlines cope with the challenging business environment created by the Covid-19 pandemic, PAL Holdings, parent of the airline’s Exchange, said yesterday. The company did not provide details about the bridging loan.

PAL, of which Tan and Japan’s ANA Holdings are among its most significant shareholders, is also implementing cost-cutting measures that include downsizing. However, while the actions helped cut operating costs by 46 percent to P82 billion, the savings could not fully offset the 64 percent drop in sales to P55 billion, reflecting the extraordinary impact of the pandemic, PAL Holdings said.

Airlines are amongst the hardest hit by the pandemic as governments worldwide impose blockades and restrict cross-border travel to limit the spread of the virus. As a result, the International Air Transport Association estimates that airlines worldwide will lose about $48 billion this year after suffering about $126 billion last year.

“PAL management and stakeholders continue working on the final stages of a comprehensive restructuring plan that will enable the airline to emerge financially stronger from the current global crisis,” PAL Holdings said in a statement.

PAL said it had resumed scheduled flights on most pre-pandemic routes, in addition to new cargo services and special round-trip flights on some ways to North America, the Middle East, Asia, and the Philippines. The airline will increase international and domestic flights as the market recovers, and travel restrictions are eased, the statement said.