Philippine airlines President Jaime Bautista says they are looking at launching routes to 4 key points in Europe: Paris (France), Amsterdam (Netherlands), Hamburg (Germany) and Rome (Italy).

"When the new, long-range A350-900s arrive, we will be capable to mount more non-stop flights to Europe."

PAL currently has one European destination -- London.

Meanwhile, PAL will be launching the Cebu-LA direct flights on Tuesday night, the Manila- Doha route on March 28th, Manila- Saipan on June 15 and the Taipei- Osaka- Taipei route on June 25.

PAL's network currently covers 43 international and 30 domestic destinations.

The flag carrier said it also aims to become a full-service, 5-star airline in five years. PAL currently has a 3-star rating from SKYTRAX, and targets to get a 4-star rating by 2017.

"We need to improve our service, exceed expectations. That's from the time the passenger books the flight, to the time he checks in at the airport, to the time they enter the airplane, including cabin service, until they get their baggage. It's the whole customer experience", says Bautista.

Once rated as a 4-star airline, Bautista believes PAL will become more attractive to strategic partners, local and foreign.

Bautista also said they expect the price of oil to stay depressed in the next 2 years, or even longer. Good news for airlines--- which benefit from as significant reduction in fuel costs.

PAL celebrates its 75th anniversary, with the launch of new branding "Heart of the Filipino", service innovations, route network expansion and fleet modernization.