Flight Report: MNL-ICN on Philippine Airlines Flight PR 466 (19 January 2023)

The subject of this post: an unremarkable flight in a mediocre aeroplane run by a middling airline.

I am duty bound to stress, however, that sometimes “unremarkable” is perfectly adequate. This is certainly the case on short routes like the one linking sunny Manila to snow-chilled Seoul, where “unremarkable” is all a non-fussy traveller really needs.

Welcome aboard Philippine Airlines flight PR 466.

Note: The information set out here pertains only to the specific flight reviewed. Cabin equipment, amenities, meal options and so on may be different on previous or future flights, even if operated by the same airline on the same route and/or under the same flight number.

For the sake of brevity, IATA airline and airport codes have been used throughout this report in place of full names (e.g., “PR” instead of “Philippine Airlines”; “MNL” instead of “Ninoy Aquino International Airport”).

This review covers the first, outbound leg (MNL-ICN) of a round-trip MNL-ICN-MNL journey. A review of the second, homebound leg (ICN-MNL) will be published in due course.

ROUTE MAP

OVERVIEW

Note: All times are local. There is a 1-hour time difference between Manila (GMT+8) and Seoul-Incheon (GMT+9).

Flight details

Airline and flight number : Philippine Airlines (PR) 466
Route : Manila, Philippines (IATA code: MNL) to Seoul-Incheon, South Korea (IATA code: ICN)
Route type : International
Date : Thursday, 19 January 2023
Scheduled departure time (MNL) : 01:00
Actual departure time (MNL) : 01:01
Scheduled arrival time (ICN) : 06:00
Actual arrival time (ICN) : 05:22

Equipment and cabin

Aircraft : Airbus A321-200
Manufacturer : Airbus
Registration number : RP-C9919
Passenger capacity : 12 Business, 187 Economy (199 total)
Travel class flown : Economy Class

Here’s RP-C9919 parked at MNL T2, shyly peeking out from behind the aerobridge that’s blocking most of the fuselage from view.

Delivered in 2015, this Airbus A321-200 wasn’t exactly long in the tooth on flight day at just 8 years of age. That said, it certainly looked older than it was thanks (or rather no thanks) to the bland, uninspired interior, which was pretty much outdated from the day it entered service. But we’ll have more to say about that later.

BAGGAGE

Your allowance will vary depending on route and fare class.

For complete details on PR’s baggage rules, please refer to your ticket and the airline’s official website.

AT THE AIRPORT

Origin

At the time of my flight, PR was based at Terminal 2 (T2) of Ninoy Aquino International Airport (IATA code: MNL).

However, as of this writing, all international flights operated by PR have been transferred to Terminal 1 (T1). T2 is now an exclusively domestic terminal and PR’s domestic flights continue to depart from and arrive there.

Further details regarding PR’s new home at MNL T1 are available in a separate Airport Guide covering that terminal.

I should point out that the passenger experience at any of MNL’s terminals is sub-par, to say the least. With T2 now all-domestic and out of the picture, international passengers are left with T1 and T3 – neither of which will qualify for any sort of aviation industry award. T3 is the largest and newest, but remains partly unfinished and more closely resembles a dying suburban shopping centre than a proper airport terminal. T1 is several decades older, small to the point of suffocating, and so bereft of dining, retail, and entertainment options that passengers have little to do other than slouch into a chair or wander about aimlessly. (Not that there’s a lot of floor space to wander about in.) PR has its own sins to answer for, but the airport isn’t one of them – and MNL is a great levelling field in that you’re bound to have a less-than-optimal experience regardless of airline.

Check-in and boarding

I usually have a lot to write about (and pictures to show of) the check-in and boarding procedures for each of my flights. On this occasion, I think it’s best if we skip over this bit – apart from the brief observations that follow – as both check-in and boarding are highly dependent upon the physical infrastructure of the flight’s assigned terminal. Given that PR now operates out of Terminal 1, a detailed description of what I experienced at Terminal 2 might be misleading.

Suffice it to say that at T2, PR’s check-in counters were not exclusive to specific flights but shared across multiple destinations. Business Class passengers and high-tier loyalty programme members had access to a set of exclusive counters.

Boarding followed the usual protocols, with Business Class and elite flyers (as well as passengers with special needs) given priority over Economy Class.

ONBOARD EXPERIENCE

Cabin interior and seating

PR operates more than one variant of the Airbus A321 series. This particular specimen belonged to a previous generation fitted with bare-bones regional equipment.

The underwhelming interiors start with 12 Business Class seats, arranged in three rows. Note the absence of footrests and leg support.

Directly aft of these are the first 18 Economy Class seats. The cream upholstery and (slightly) greater legroom of these three rows hearken back to their former role as Premium Economy seats – or rather, what PR’s former management thought they could dupe the travelling public into thinking was Premium Economy. With the only differences being a sliver of extra floor space and a different seat colour, only the gullible would have thought of this middle cabin as anything other than a mere extension of Economy. Fortunately, PR is now under different management and they’ve sensibly reclassified these seats as plain Economy, albeit requiring an extra fee to reserve due to their prized forward position.

The rest of the fuselage belongs to Economy Class: 169 seats upholstered in faux leather with the same sickening shade of blue as on your typical dentist’s chair or cut-rate surgery bed. I was seated in the first row aft of Fake Premium Economy, which was as far forwards as I could put myself without paying extra.

As for the seat back, well…

…there was a whole lot of nothing. Behold the howling wilderness.

Tray table and tiny seat pocket. That’s it. No IFE screen, no proper coat hook, no charging port, no cup holder – none of the bits and bobs that one might reasonably expect to see on an aeroplane owned by a full-service airline. If this were an LCC I’d have nothing to complain about, but PR is no LCC and their ticket prices are no bargain fares.

And as for the ceiling panel…

…yeah, nothing special overhead. I do appreciate the adjustable air vents.

Now for a wider shot of the cabin.

I usually write about the IFE system close to the end of my flight reports, but in keeping with the theme of underwhelming blandness we shall tackle that next.

In-flight entertainment

Haha, you’re out of luck my unfortunate chap. Not even the Business Class seats on this specific PR A321 variant come with personal monitors. There’s a wireless IFE network that you can access on your own device for free (using a PR app), but…no. Just no. That doesn’t count. Not unless they’ve supplied each seat with a device holder for hands-free use and a charging point to keep one’s battery juiced up.

To be scrupulously fair, PR’s newer planes – including its A321neo aircraft – are fully equipped with in-seat IFE. Shame my flight wasn’t operated with one of those.

Right, let’s see if PR can redeem themselves through the onboard cuisine.

Catering

Here’s my dinner tray as originally served…

…and with the cover taken off the main course. I’ve forgotten what exactly was served on the flight (or whether we were offered a choice), but the image clearly shows a beef and pasta dish with a side of vegetables.

Nothing to write home about, true enough – but even with my poor recollections of the flight I do remember being satisfied with the meal. This round goes to PR.

OVERALL IMPRESSION

Today’s flight report is on the shorter side, partly because the event is months in the past and my memories of the trip aren’t as fresh as I’d like them to be. Moreover, the PR experience – or more precisely, the PR experience on their older-generation fleet – doesn’t provide much material to write about. Bare-bones seats (even in Business Class!), bland interior fittings, no proper IFE…the emptiness speaks for itself, really.

Other things do provide a fair counterbalance to all this mediocrity. Catering’s decent, for one. The cabin attendants were polite and maintained the right degree of attentiveness. Can’t fault the on-time departure and early arrival, though I do realise that’s highly dependent on the airports involved.

On the whole, I have little to say about PR 466. But for a relatively short regional hop like the one between Manila and Seoul, that’s not necessarily a bad thing.

Given the right price and schedule, I’d fly with PR again on this route.

Cheerio.