PAL moves launch of Sapporo flights to October

Philippine Airlines (PAL) said it will move the launch of its flights to Sapporo from its initial schedule on Monday, Sept. 10, to October, hampered by the effects of the earthquake that hit Japan on Thursday.
“Due to a strong 6.7 earthquake which hit Hokkaido early this morning resulting in power outages and blocked roads, PAL will be postponing the original September 10 launch of its Manila – Sapporo – Manila route to a new date – October 8,” the company said in a post on its official Facebook page.
PAL noted customers who bought tickets going to Sapporo scheduled between Sept. 10 to Oct. 7 may rebook their flights free of charge within 30 days from Oct. 8.
The flag carrier announced in July its plans to fly to Sapporo because of the rising demand from Filipinos to fly to Japan.
PAL said it will fly to Sapporo thrice weekly, its sixth destination linking the country to Japan. It currently offers flights to Fukuoka, Osaka (Kansai), Nagoya (Chubu) and Tokyo (Narita and Haneda), with chartered flights to Okinawa island. — Denise A. Valdez