Philippine Airlines has just put its newest route to the United States on sale, and it’s one that we knew was coming…
Philippine Airlines plans Chicago flights as of late 2026
As of November 9, 2026, Philippine Airlines plans to launch 3x weekly nonstop flights between Manila (MNL) and Chicago (ORD). At 8,132 miles, this will be an ultra long haul flight, probably around the 25th longest flight in the world. The new service will operate with the following schedule:
PR132 Manila to Chicago departing 4:40PM arriving 4:45PM
PR133 Chicago to Manila departing 10:45PM arriving 5:25AM (+2 days)
The route will operate on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, in both directions, and is blocked at 14hr15min to the United States, and a whopping 16hr40min to the Philippines. The airline will use an Airbus A350-900 for the route, featuring 295 seats. This includes 30 business class seats (I’ve reviewed this product), 24 premium economy seats, and 241 economy seats.
Flights are already on sale. Several weeks back we had a sense this route was coming, when the airline filed with the Department of Transportation (DOT) to request regulatory approval for this service.
Here’s how Philippine Airlines President Richard Nuttall describes this service:
“Chicago is considered one of the premier hubs in the United States, and our entry into this vibrant city will provide direct connectivity to the Midwest. At the same time, serving the Chicago–Manila corridor will create vital links to key regional destinations and major Philippine domestic markets through our Manila hub.”
How Chicago fits into Philippine Airlines’ route network
For context, currently Philippine Airlines’ destinations in the United States include Guam (GUM), Honolulu (HNL), Los Angeles (LAX), New York (JFK), Saipan (SPN), San Francisco (SFO), and Seattle (SEA). Seattle is the newest gateway, with that route having launched in late 2024.
Philippine Airlines has been through quite the transformation in recent years. In 2021, the airline filed for bankruptcy protection, and significantly shrunk its fleet, given the impacts of the pandemic. Then in 2023, the airline placed an order for nine Airbus A350-1000s, just shortly after dumping some of its existing Airbus A350-900s. Those planes are now joining the fleet, so I imagine that growth is what enables new routes like this one.
Philippine Airlines doesn’t belong to any major global alliance. Instead, the airline (obviously) serves the local market in the Philippines, but also often has attractive fares across the Pacific, for those connecting to elsewhere.
In terms of the size of the Filipino population, Chicago ranks seventh(ish) among US cities, after Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, Honolulu, San Diego, and Las Vegas. As you can see, the top four cities are all served by the airline. Meanwhile the airline used to fly to Las Vegas as a tag flight from the Vancouver service, but that doesn’t operate anymore.
Bottom line
As of November 2026, Philippine Airlines intends to launch nonstop flights between Manila and Chicago, and flights are now on sale. This complements the existing US mainland destinations of Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and Seattle, and it seems like a logical enough place for the airline to expand to. With the new A350-1000s that the airline is acquiring, there’s also a bit more room to grow (though this route will be operated by an A350-900).
What do you make of Philippine Airlines adding Chicago flights?
