To celebrate its 70th anniversary, Philippine Airlines will give away 70,000 free tickets. Established on February 16, 1941 by a group of famous Filipino entrepreneurs, PAL launched its first flight on March 15, 1941 when a Beech Model 18 aircraft carrying five passengers took off from Nielsen Airport in Makati bound for Baguio. This flight made Philippine Airlines the first airline in Asia. Today, as the largest airline in the Philippines, Philippine Airlines has a fleet of 41 jet aircraft flying to 44 domestic and international destinations. At the end of this month, two more overseas cities - Brisbane and Riyadh - will be added to Philippine Airlines' international network. In 2009, the passenger volume of Philippine Airlines exceeded 8.96 million, an increase of 17.1% year-on-year. Mr. Lin Yingming, sales manager of Philippine Airlines Beijing area introduced that all passengers who purchase tickets in the Philippines or through the Philippine Airlines website can participate in this lottery activity. The prize is a free ticket on the same route as the purchased ticket. The lottery will be held once a month for nine months with 16,000 people being drawn. The prizes include free tickets on the same route as the purchased tickets. On March 15, 2011, the 70th anniversary of Philippine Airlines, 3,000 lucky passengers will have the opportunity to travel for free. "Passengers are reminded to purchase tickets through the official Philippine Airlines website and leave contact phone numbers if possible so that our staff can get in touch with passengers in time," said Philippine Airlines. In addition to giving away free tickets, Philippine Airlines will also launch promotional activities such as "anniversary special price" discounted tickets and "free trip to the Philippines" overseas promotions. Philippine Airlines simultaneously announced in Beijing, Manila and other places that to celebrate its upcoming 70th anniversary in March 2011, it will launch a series of promotional activities in 2010. A total of 70,000 free Philippine Airlines tickets worldwide will be given away in the form of a lottery sale. From March 16 to December 31, 2010, passengers who book through the Philippine Airlines website will have the chance to win.