It is a sad commentary on the state of our aviation industry when agencies in the United States and Europe claim that our Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines as doing so poor a job, that it is necessary to classify our airport in the Category 2 status as given to us five years ago, because we did not comply with world safety standards. And then, back at the start of this year, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) still found 23 “critical elements” that the CAAP has to address before we can be given a Category 1 ranking.
In 2007, the FAA conducted an International Aviation Safety Assessment on the Philippines and downgraded the country’s status to Category 2. This essentially means that the Philippines does not comply with world safety standards of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and cannot expand its services into international airports, but must lease from other operators with Category 1 status. Then in 2009, ICAO conducted its own audit that resulted in more safety concern findings, strengthening the FAA results. It cited unmet issues on the implementation of air safety oversight, deficiencies in registration, and inadequate security systems. To add to the growing concern, in 2010, the European Union, following in the FAA’s lead also blacklisted the Philippines and banned Philippine carriers from flying to Europe.
Another visit is to be set by the US early next year to determine if we have adequately upgraded our airports enough to warrant a category upgrade. However, this seems like a long shot considering the amount of time left to implement so many more changes, and the turtle pace of our government aviation officials in moving towards improving the aviation image in our country and upgrading the prehistoric conditions of our airports and runways.
It seems to be an on-going nightmare when it comes to Philippine aviation. While many of our Asian neighbors, namely Hong Kong, Singapore, and South Korea, have invested billions of dollars to modernize their main international gateways, the international airport in the Philippines is in a sorry state, lacking in repair and innovations, another reason why the Philippines continues to get a bad rap.
Last year, a web blog that ranks global airports and is interactive with consumers and readers, branded the country’s Terminal 1 as the world’s worst facility. This is based on a non-official opinion, but rather the reviews of travelers and customers who have experienced the airport firsthand. They complained of poor facilities, uncomfortable seating, safety issues, and lack of cleanliness among others. And in the social media world in general, where complaints can move at the speed of light, people just continue to talk about our airport facilities, especially in comparison to airports they travel to around the world. In the same article that landed the Philippines as the worse airport, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Malaysia were ranked among the best.
Indeed, it is not just the passenger ranking that hurts the country’s aviation industry, but our current Category 2 ranking is continuing to plague the entire aviation industry in the country. And that’s not all, it has also given the Philippines a bad image as a hospitable destination for foreign business, investment, and travel and undermined the country’s position against its Asian neighbors.
What’s frustrating is that the new and more modern Terminal 3 was completed several years ago and is not being fully utilized because of contractual disputes and issues. It does not house any international carriers. At the same time, safety concerns continue to mount at our older Terminal 1 and 2. This is especially true for Terminal 1, which is the international hub in our country. Due to ongoing problems concerning their facilities, they have had to house several flights on too few operational runways. This results in aircraft having to wait in “traffic” while being cleared to land and can cause an average delay of 30-50 minutes, unnecessary fuel usage, and higher potential for air traffic accidents. Not to mention the delays caused here ripple throughout the entire day causing delays in departures and arrivals alike. Coupled with problems on radar issues and other safety concerns, just seems like a Herculean task to dig ourselves out of this rut.
Poor infrastructure, aging radar systems, and ancient technology all work together to cause problems at the airport including delays and passenger gridlock. These, along with other concerns, have sent international airlines heading for the hills. This year we lost our last and only direct flight to Europe as we bid farewell to Air France-KLM flights from Manila to Amsterdam and other European carriers left long ago.
Which brings us to the country’s current state. In many ways it’s a world of contradictions as the Department of Tourism has successfully launched and pushed its agenda of promoting the Philippines as the “more fun” to visit destination, while actually getting to the Philippines remains a headache. Airlines have even had to re-route to Clark and Subic on occasion due to airport problems. This is an ongoing concern and must be addressed if the country wants to reach its full potential as a tourist and business investment destination. More and more recognition are being given to the Philippines as social media and traditional media continue to push the “It’s more fun in the Philippines” slogan for the country, and I feel this would truly take off more if our airport once and for all, modernize its facilities, address the safety and technical issues and become a world class airport for global passengers.
It’s not an impossible idea, it just needs to be fully addressed by the right officials. Although Category 2 ranking is still in effect, the CAAP receive some positive reviews during a recent validation mission conducted by ICAO. Officials from CAAP claim that the exit interview, on the whole, was positive and was a step in the right direction. They claim that ICAO remains positive that remaining problems could be resolved in the very near future. While they have yet to come out with a final report, CAAP has expressed confidence that corrective measures would be in place for remaining concerns by February 2013.
I am hopeful but also pragmatic about these claims. While it is good to remain positive, we must also be thorough and hardworking to get back Category 1 status and uplift our aviation industry once again. It has been long, past five years, and while much deterioration has happened, it is not too late to turn things around. We just need the funding and the full cooperation of all agencies involved to achieve results. After all, isn’t it time we catch up with the rest of the world when it comes to aviation standards? If we can achieve this, it will truly be more fun in our country.
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