Business Mirror
December 20, 2010
IN a rare alliance among competitors, rival airlines have joined forces in seeking a cease-and-desist order (CDO) against Manila-based Southeast Asian Airlines (Seair) and Singaporean budget carrier Tiger Airways which they accuse of violating CAB (Civil Aeronautics Board) laws.
“It is noted that all four Philippine carriers took the unprecedented step of filing said consolidated opposition, in which we jointly requested the Board to issue a CDO directing Seair and Tiger to stop selling and promoting the Clark-Singapore vice-versa flights until the board is able to investigate the matter to determine if Seair and Tiger activities and operations fully comply with Philippine laws, rules and regulations,” said Philippine Airline (PAL) senior assistant vice president Socorro Gonzaga.
PAL, Air Philippines Corp. Zest Airways, Cebu Air asked the CAB to launch a full and exhaustive investigation into the matter for the purpose of asserting, among others, that the marketing agreement signed between Seair and Tiger is in strict compliance with the terms of the CAB Resolution 51 issued in 2008.
Section E of the said policy states that (Seair) should not allow (Tiger) access to traffic rights not otherwise available to (Tiger) or otherwise be used as a means to circumvent existing laws against cabotage access by Tiger.
Section F, meanwhile, states that no financial benefit shall be obtained by (Tiger) nor shall lease price be dependent on the profit or loss of the operation of (Seair).
Tiger earlier announced that it inked a marketing and lease agreement with Seair. Under the deal, Seair will be lent two Tiger Airways jets, which will be the biggest aircraft in Seair’s fleet. Seair flights will also be sold on Tiger’s website.
The airlines opposing Seair and Tiger’s so-called partnership arrangement believe that the agreement is not limited to that dry leasing by Seair of A320 aircraft from Tiger.
The CAB previously mandated Seair and Tiger to submit a copy of their marketing agreement but opposing carriers a sanitized may not be enough to allow the board to determine whether the two carriers are indeed complying with the said conditions. As such, they asked the CAB officials to closely scrutinize the marketing arrangement between Seair and Tiger. This may entail a meticulous review of the marketing agreement, a close monitoring of their marketing and distribution activities, and as requested above, a full blown investigation and hearing on the matter,” the airlines said.
Also, they alleged that Seair may be engaged in an act of air commerce without a valid approval from the CAB, which is a violation of the pertinent provisions of Republic Act 776. “A check of the web sites of both Tiger and Seair show that the flights are already available for booking and purchase.
However, there is express notation to the effect that, the [DG flights are subject to regulatory approval.’ The same strongly implies that Seair has not yet obtained approval to market and sell the flights from either the CAB or Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore.”
“Given the foregoing, we further request the board to immediately issue a CDO directing Seair and Tiger to stop advertising and offering the said flights for booking and sale until such time as the Board has determined that the activities being undertaken by Seair and Tiger are compliant with Philippine law, rules and regulations,” they said.
The letter was addressed to CAB executive director Carmelo Arcilla and was signed by Enrique Antonio Esquivel and Ma. Clara de Castro, counsels for PAL; Paterno Mantaring Jr., Cebu Pacific lawyer; Butch Rodriguez, Zest Airways senior vice president for commercial and external affairs; and John Voltaire Almeda, Air Philippines lawyer.
Aside from Seair and Tiger, Malaysia’s Air Asia announced plans to put up a unit in the country. Its founding chair, Tony Fernandes, recently formed a joint venture with businessmen Antonio “Tonyboy” Cojuangco, Michael Romero and Maan Hontiveros to put up Air Asia Philippines. This will be Air Asia’s third affiliate in the region, following the establishment of Air Asia Indonesia and Air Asia Thailand.
As this developed, Cebu Pacific said in a statement last week that it prepared for the increased competition in the local air travel sector.
“We are lean-and-mean efficient, with a very young fleet of Airbus aircraft and a highly motivated team. This year, our financial performance ranks among the best in the world. We are ready for more competition in our own country and in theirs,” said Candice Iyog, Cebu Pacific vice president for marketing and distribution.
Cebu Pacific also announced that its flight attendants will perform their famous “safety dance” on board select flights this holiday season.
In a separate statement, the Gokongwei-led budget carrier announced that its “Cabin Crew Safety Dance” would be making a comeback from December 20 to 31.
“It has been previously performed only on two flights, one from Manila to Butuan and another from Manila to Davao, to gather passenger feedback,” the company said in a statement.
Monday, December 20, 2010
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Pocket Open Skies: Calling for a Fair Deal, not a "toothless" exercise
Philippine Daily Inquirer
by Fair Trade Alliance - Philippines on Wednesday, December 8, 2010 at 8:04pm
The Philippines needs safeguards to ensure effectiveness and substantive value:
Any grant of air traffic entitlements must be reciprocal.
Entitlements to be granted must be only for operations between an airline’s home state and the Philippines, not between the Philippines and a third country (a.k.a. 5th/6th/7th freedom rights) unless Philippine carriers are able to obtain the same market access opportunities.
Only foreign airlines which have used or nearly exhausted their existing entitlements granted under bilateral air agreements could be given more entitlements. Priority should be given to the utilization of existing entitlements, of which there are reportedly millions of unused seat capacities available (as cited during recent congressional hearings).
Entitlements may only be granted to airlines of countries that have not imposed any trade restrictions in recent years that affect Philippine air carriers, e.g., no operating bans/blacklists or downgradings of safety/security status; no reports of governments denying applications by Philippine carriers without reasonable basis; no reports of discrimination in market access between Philippines vs. foreign airlines.
If, after two years of operation, it is demonstrated that tourist arrivals from a foreign airline’s home state have not increased by more than 50% overall, or by numbers equivalent to least 60% of the additional air seat capacity introduced by the grantee airline, then the granted entitlements shall be suspended. If the granted entitlements were incorporated into a bilateral aviation agreement, then such agreement shall be abrogated unilaterally by the Philippines.
"Pocket open skies" should have as its key underlying principle, the Constitutional provision (Article XII, Section 10) that: “In the grant of rights, privileges, and concessions covering the national economy and patrimony, the State shall give preference to qualified Filipinos.”; as well as the provision (Article XII, Section 12) that: “The State shall promote the preferential use of Filipino labor, domestic materials and locally produced goods, and adopt measures that help make them competitive”.
Any grant of entitlements must not adversely affect Filipino jobs in the Philippine aviation industry, or lead to the loss of labor rights and privileges for Filipinos.
Any grant of entitlements must ensure that equal, if not preferential, privileges are given to airline companies in which Filipinos make up the majority of their total labor force.
Due diligence must be undertaken to avoid having foreign airlines with dummy operations in the Philippines, i.e., using the name and identity of a Philippine air carrier to operate a service to, from or within the Philippines, while the substantive portion of its business is conducted from a foreign country by a labor force and management team composed largely of non-Filipinos.
"Pocket open skies" require that national and/or local governments prioritize the development of airport infrastructure to support the targeted increase in tourism and ensure maximum adherence to safety and public convenience. Such as: (1) Construction of a full-fledged international terminal at Clark with multiple airbridge gates, along with a second runway to allow for parallel take-offs and landings (the existing second runway at Clark, which is too close to the first runway, must be converted to a taxiway instead), and of such length as to allow for take-offs of Airbus A380 and Boeing 747-400 and B747-8 long-range aircraft at full payload, (2) construction of high-speed rail and road access linking the Clark terminal directly to the population centers in Metro Manila and nearby provinces, and (3) construction of new airport and terminal facilities in Bohol, Aklan province, Palawan, Bicol and other key tourist destinations.
Our country’s unbridled ‘open skies’ policy is neither fair nor balanced for the local aviation industry in particular and the national economy in general. What FairTrade is pushing for is a “calibrated and step-by-step liberalization” of the industry, a liberalization process supportive of the modernization and expansion of the domestic aviation and ancillary industries based on thorough assessment of existing air agreements and within the framework of an Omnibus Aviation Industry Development Plan - not a sweeping and mindless liberalization, much less surrender of our options and national interest.
Like the Philippine islands and the seas around them, our skies are part of our national patrimony.
by Fair Trade Alliance - Philippines on Wednesday, December 8, 2010 at 8:04pm
The Philippines needs safeguards to ensure effectiveness and substantive value:
Any grant of air traffic entitlements must be reciprocal.
Entitlements to be granted must be only for operations between an airline’s home state and the Philippines, not between the Philippines and a third country (a.k.a. 5th/6th/7th freedom rights) unless Philippine carriers are able to obtain the same market access opportunities.
Only foreign airlines which have used or nearly exhausted their existing entitlements granted under bilateral air agreements could be given more entitlements. Priority should be given to the utilization of existing entitlements, of which there are reportedly millions of unused seat capacities available (as cited during recent congressional hearings).
Entitlements may only be granted to airlines of countries that have not imposed any trade restrictions in recent years that affect Philippine air carriers, e.g., no operating bans/blacklists or downgradings of safety/security status; no reports of governments denying applications by Philippine carriers without reasonable basis; no reports of discrimination in market access between Philippines vs. foreign airlines.
If, after two years of operation, it is demonstrated that tourist arrivals from a foreign airline’s home state have not increased by more than 50% overall, or by numbers equivalent to least 60% of the additional air seat capacity introduced by the grantee airline, then the granted entitlements shall be suspended. If the granted entitlements were incorporated into a bilateral aviation agreement, then such agreement shall be abrogated unilaterally by the Philippines.
"Pocket open skies" should have as its key underlying principle, the Constitutional provision (Article XII, Section 10) that: “In the grant of rights, privileges, and concessions covering the national economy and patrimony, the State shall give preference to qualified Filipinos.”; as well as the provision (Article XII, Section 12) that: “The State shall promote the preferential use of Filipino labor, domestic materials and locally produced goods, and adopt measures that help make them competitive”.
Any grant of entitlements must not adversely affect Filipino jobs in the Philippine aviation industry, or lead to the loss of labor rights and privileges for Filipinos.
Any grant of entitlements must ensure that equal, if not preferential, privileges are given to airline companies in which Filipinos make up the majority of their total labor force.
Due diligence must be undertaken to avoid having foreign airlines with dummy operations in the Philippines, i.e., using the name and identity of a Philippine air carrier to operate a service to, from or within the Philippines, while the substantive portion of its business is conducted from a foreign country by a labor force and management team composed largely of non-Filipinos.
"Pocket open skies" require that national and/or local governments prioritize the development of airport infrastructure to support the targeted increase in tourism and ensure maximum adherence to safety and public convenience. Such as: (1) Construction of a full-fledged international terminal at Clark with multiple airbridge gates, along with a second runway to allow for parallel take-offs and landings (the existing second runway at Clark, which is too close to the first runway, must be converted to a taxiway instead), and of such length as to allow for take-offs of Airbus A380 and Boeing 747-400 and B747-8 long-range aircraft at full payload, (2) construction of high-speed rail and road access linking the Clark terminal directly to the population centers in Metro Manila and nearby provinces, and (3) construction of new airport and terminal facilities in Bohol, Aklan province, Palawan, Bicol and other key tourist destinations.
Our country’s unbridled ‘open skies’ policy is neither fair nor balanced for the local aviation industry in particular and the national economy in general. What FairTrade is pushing for is a “calibrated and step-by-step liberalization” of the industry, a liberalization process supportive of the modernization and expansion of the domestic aviation and ancillary industries based on thorough assessment of existing air agreements and within the framework of an Omnibus Aviation Industry Development Plan - not a sweeping and mindless liberalization, much less surrender of our options and national interest.
Like the Philippine islands and the seas around them, our skies are part of our national patrimony.
Friday, December 3, 2010
No need for open skies - CAAP
By Jess Diaz and Mary Ann Ll. Reyes (The Philippine Star) Updated December 02, 2010 12:00 AM
MANILA, Philippines – There is no need for the so-called “open skies” as the country is effectively pursuing a liberalized aviation policy, a representative of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) said yesterday.
Lawyer Joseph Ray Gumabon told the House committee on transportation chaired by Leyte Rep. Roger Mercado that foreign airlines are free to include the country in their routes.
But they do not include the Philippines in their route map because there are not enough passengers, he said.
There is also the safety issue involving aviation infrastructure in the country, which has prompted US authorities to give the country a low safety rating, lumping it with some underdeveloped African nations, he said.
Committee member Eastern Samar Rep. Ben Evardone said he got the impression from the testimony of Gumabon that “we have no need for an open skies policy.”
“In fact, between the US and Manila, for instance, there are enough available airline seats but there are not enough passengers,” he said.
“There are apparently no restrictions for foreign airlines to fly to Clark in Angeles City, Cebu, Davao, and other local destinations,” he said.
For its part, Philippine Airlines (PAL) assured the lawmakers that it would support an open skies policy if it is fair, reciprocal and would not place local carriers at a disadvantage against foreign airlines.
PAL senior assistant vice president for external affairs Ma. Socorro Gonzaga said foreign carriers enjoy adequate access to Philippine skies, debunking claims there is lack of airline seats to accommodate tourists.
She said what the country really needs are more investments in infrastructure, a stable peace and order situation, and positive image abroad to attract tourists.
“It’s not the number of airline seats that is the behind the lack of tourist interest in the Philippines but the country’s negative image abroad, specially in the area of peace and order and security,” she pointed out.
Despite this perception, Gonzaga said PAL, as the country’s flag carrier, has always been at the forefront in developing key markets to boost Philippine tourism.
She said PAL is the only Philippine carrier flying to and from several significant destinations around the world, making it the one of the primary drivers of Philippine tourism.
She pointed out that since the Ramos administration, the Philippines has been liberally granting entitlements to foreign airlines. At present, she said there are 47.4 million seats available to foreign and local carriers.
However, of these available seats, only 10.97 million seats – or 23 percent of total entitlements – were used by foreign and local carriers last year.
Of the 10.97 million passengers that came to the country by air in 2009, only 2.9 million were tourists.
Gonzaga pointed out that these figures belie the claim by proponents of open skies that there is lack of airline seats to accommodate foreign visitors.
“Even without open skies, the six million tourist arrival target of the Department of Tourism by 2016 could be accommodated based on existing airline seats or entitlements available to both foreign and local carriers,” she stressed.
She said seat entitlements to Clark are about 25.6 million; to Cebu, 20.7 million; to Davao, 20.3 million, and to Kalibo, Bohol, Palawan and Laoag, 19.6 million. In Manila, there are 21.2 million seats available yearly.
Gonzaga said the figures effectively debunk the arguments of open skies advocates that the lack of airline seats is the principal reason for low tourist arrivals in the country.
MANILA, Philippines – There is no need for the so-called “open skies” as the country is effectively pursuing a liberalized aviation policy, a representative of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) said yesterday.
Lawyer Joseph Ray Gumabon told the House committee on transportation chaired by Leyte Rep. Roger Mercado that foreign airlines are free to include the country in their routes.
But they do not include the Philippines in their route map because there are not enough passengers, he said.
There is also the safety issue involving aviation infrastructure in the country, which has prompted US authorities to give the country a low safety rating, lumping it with some underdeveloped African nations, he said.
Committee member Eastern Samar Rep. Ben Evardone said he got the impression from the testimony of Gumabon that “we have no need for an open skies policy.”
“In fact, between the US and Manila, for instance, there are enough available airline seats but there are not enough passengers,” he said.
“There are apparently no restrictions for foreign airlines to fly to Clark in Angeles City, Cebu, Davao, and other local destinations,” he said.
For its part, Philippine Airlines (PAL) assured the lawmakers that it would support an open skies policy if it is fair, reciprocal and would not place local carriers at a disadvantage against foreign airlines.
PAL senior assistant vice president for external affairs Ma. Socorro Gonzaga said foreign carriers enjoy adequate access to Philippine skies, debunking claims there is lack of airline seats to accommodate tourists.
She said what the country really needs are more investments in infrastructure, a stable peace and order situation, and positive image abroad to attract tourists.
“It’s not the number of airline seats that is the behind the lack of tourist interest in the Philippines but the country’s negative image abroad, specially in the area of peace and order and security,” she pointed out.
Despite this perception, Gonzaga said PAL, as the country’s flag carrier, has always been at the forefront in developing key markets to boost Philippine tourism.
She said PAL is the only Philippine carrier flying to and from several significant destinations around the world, making it the one of the primary drivers of Philippine tourism.
She pointed out that since the Ramos administration, the Philippines has been liberally granting entitlements to foreign airlines. At present, she said there are 47.4 million seats available to foreign and local carriers.
However, of these available seats, only 10.97 million seats – or 23 percent of total entitlements – were used by foreign and local carriers last year.
Of the 10.97 million passengers that came to the country by air in 2009, only 2.9 million were tourists.
Gonzaga pointed out that these figures belie the claim by proponents of open skies that there is lack of airline seats to accommodate foreign visitors.
“Even without open skies, the six million tourist arrival target of the Department of Tourism by 2016 could be accommodated based on existing airline seats or entitlements available to both foreign and local carriers,” she stressed.
She said seat entitlements to Clark are about 25.6 million; to Cebu, 20.7 million; to Davao, 20.3 million, and to Kalibo, Bohol, Palawan and Laoag, 19.6 million. In Manila, there are 21.2 million seats available yearly.
Gonzaga said the figures effectively debunk the arguments of open skies advocates that the lack of airline seats is the principal reason for low tourist arrivals in the country.
Lawmakers, aviation exec lukewarm to ‘open skies’
By Michael Lim Ubac
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 04:20:00 12/02/2010
MANILA, Philippines—Lawmakers are supporting Philippine Airlines’ opposition to the open skies policy that the Aquino administration is pursuing in order to increase tourist arrivals.
At a House transportation committee hearing Wednesday on several pending bills to open up the country’s aviation, PAL officials said it would only support a “fair and reciprocal” policy to open Philippine skies to foreign carriers, a sentiment that some committee members said they shared.
According to Ma. Socorro Gonzaga, PAL assistant vice president for external affairs, the number of airline seats was not the reason behind the lack of tourist interest in the Philippines, “but the country’s negative image abroad, especially in the area of peace and order and security.”
Mr. Aquino announced the open skies policy at the opening of the public-private partnerships and infrastructure conference last month.
He told foreign and local business leaders that his government would pursue the full implementation of EO 219 (the liberalization of air travel industry) in international aviation.
The Department of Tourism is targeting to attract 3.1 million tourists this year, progressively increasing to six million by 2016.
Mr. Aquino said the liberalization would be done gradually, starting with “what is called pocket open skies.”
However, PAL and House members at the hearing seemed lukewarm even to a partial open skies policy.
An official of the Civil Aeronautics Board told the hearing that open skies does not ensure more passengers.
Porvenir Porciuncula, CAB deputy executive director, said many foreign airlines have numerous seat entitlements, but are not actually flying to secondary gateways or key cities outside of Metro Manila like Davao, Cebu or Cagayan.
“It is really a function of the market. Open skies will not guarantee foreign airline flights to the country. The more urgent thing is to address infrastructure, facilities, the image of country abroad,” he said.
A representative of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines said that while the country remained in the aviation blacklists, any law that would open up the country’s skies would be toothless because of lingering safety concerns at the airports.
This prompted some lawmakers to raise the possibility of shelving the bills calling for open skies.
Gonzaga also claimed that foreign carriers already enjoyed adequate access to Philippine skies.
She said there are at present 47.4 million seats available to foreign and local carriers, but only 10.97 million seats, or 23 percent, were used last year.
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 04:20:00 12/02/2010
MANILA, Philippines—Lawmakers are supporting Philippine Airlines’ opposition to the open skies policy that the Aquino administration is pursuing in order to increase tourist arrivals.
At a House transportation committee hearing Wednesday on several pending bills to open up the country’s aviation, PAL officials said it would only support a “fair and reciprocal” policy to open Philippine skies to foreign carriers, a sentiment that some committee members said they shared.
According to Ma. Socorro Gonzaga, PAL assistant vice president for external affairs, the number of airline seats was not the reason behind the lack of tourist interest in the Philippines, “but the country’s negative image abroad, especially in the area of peace and order and security.”
Mr. Aquino announced the open skies policy at the opening of the public-private partnerships and infrastructure conference last month.
He told foreign and local business leaders that his government would pursue the full implementation of EO 219 (the liberalization of air travel industry) in international aviation.
The Department of Tourism is targeting to attract 3.1 million tourists this year, progressively increasing to six million by 2016.
Mr. Aquino said the liberalization would be done gradually, starting with “what is called pocket open skies.”
However, PAL and House members at the hearing seemed lukewarm even to a partial open skies policy.
An official of the Civil Aeronautics Board told the hearing that open skies does not ensure more passengers.
Porvenir Porciuncula, CAB deputy executive director, said many foreign airlines have numerous seat entitlements, but are not actually flying to secondary gateways or key cities outside of Metro Manila like Davao, Cebu or Cagayan.
“It is really a function of the market. Open skies will not guarantee foreign airline flights to the country. The more urgent thing is to address infrastructure, facilities, the image of country abroad,” he said.
A representative of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines said that while the country remained in the aviation blacklists, any law that would open up the country’s skies would be toothless because of lingering safety concerns at the airports.
This prompted some lawmakers to raise the possibility of shelving the bills calling for open skies.
Gonzaga also claimed that foreign carriers already enjoyed adequate access to Philippine skies.
She said there are at present 47.4 million seats available to foreign and local carriers, but only 10.97 million seats, or 23 percent, were used last year.
Thursday, December 2, 2010
Solons cold to 'open skies' policy
Manila Bulletin
By BEN R. ROSARIO
December 1, 2010, 7:53pm
MANILA, Philippines — Assured by government aeronautics agencies that the country already observes liberalized civil aviation regulation, key leaders of the House committee on transportation have suddenly gone cold to measures to adopt an “open skies” policy in the Philippines.
Reps. Ben Evardone (Lakas-Kampi, Eastern Samar), Rene Relampagos (LP, Bohol) and Magtanggol Gunigundo (Lakas-Kampi, Valenzuela) admitted they are not totally convinced an open skies policy is what the country needs to invigorate the tourism industry.
In Wednesday’s public hearing, Evardone and Relampagos entertained the idea of archiving House Bill 1352 and 3312 although both agreed later to give their authors, Reps. Rex Gatchalian (NPC, Valenzuela City) and Aurora Cerilles (NPC, Zamboanga del Sur), the opportunity to defend their proposals in the next hearing.
The positions taken by the solons were apparently triggered by statements issued by officials of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines and the Civil Aeronautics Board during the hearing.
Lawyer Joseph Ray Gumabon of CAAP said “pocket open skies” will be rendered inutile unless the Philippines attains a Category 1 rating for its international aviation safety standards. At present the country is rated at Category 2.
Gumabon noted that a Category 2 status puts the country in the same standard level as many African nations.
The CAAP representative stressed that a holistic approach in aviation standards that would include internationally acceptable security and safety values must first be guaranteed before government opts for an open skies policy to fully liberalize the civil aviation industry.
CAB deputy executive director Porvenir Porciuncula told lawmakers that civil aeronautics is already under a liberalized status because global leaders in commercial aviation have free access to the country.
“Our air agreements already allow flights to most of the points outside Manila. The big markets, Japan, US, China, South Korea, they can operate in Cebu, Davao but what they are looking for is profitability,” said Porciuncula.
The CAB official stressed that the open skies policy should not be taken as a “cure all” to the government’s need to lure more travelers, particularly tourists, to the country.
“Kulang sa atin ay infrastructure and better marketing promotions. Peace and order and air safety is also important,” said Porciuncula.
Aquilino Zapanta of South East Asian Airlines and Socorro Gonzaga of the Philippine Airlines aired opposing positions on the issue.
Zapanta assured the Department of Justice that there are no constitutional infirmities in the bill when it comes to reciprocity.
“We don’t give or provide unilateral traffic rights to any airline into the Philipppines,” Zapanta said.
Gonzaga, PAL senior assistant vice president for external affairs, assured lawmakers that it would support an open skies policy but only if it is fair, reciprocal and would not unduly place local carriers at a disadvantage.
She said foreign carriers enjoy adequate access to Philippine skies, debunking claims there is lack of airline seats to accommodate tourists.
Gonzaga said the country needs more investments in infrastructure, a stable peace and order situation, and positive image abroad to attract tourists.
By BEN R. ROSARIO
December 1, 2010, 7:53pm
MANILA, Philippines — Assured by government aeronautics agencies that the country already observes liberalized civil aviation regulation, key leaders of the House committee on transportation have suddenly gone cold to measures to adopt an “open skies” policy in the Philippines.
Reps. Ben Evardone (Lakas-Kampi, Eastern Samar), Rene Relampagos (LP, Bohol) and Magtanggol Gunigundo (Lakas-Kampi, Valenzuela) admitted they are not totally convinced an open skies policy is what the country needs to invigorate the tourism industry.
In Wednesday’s public hearing, Evardone and Relampagos entertained the idea of archiving House Bill 1352 and 3312 although both agreed later to give their authors, Reps. Rex Gatchalian (NPC, Valenzuela City) and Aurora Cerilles (NPC, Zamboanga del Sur), the opportunity to defend their proposals in the next hearing.
The positions taken by the solons were apparently triggered by statements issued by officials of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines and the Civil Aeronautics Board during the hearing.
Lawyer Joseph Ray Gumabon of CAAP said “pocket open skies” will be rendered inutile unless the Philippines attains a Category 1 rating for its international aviation safety standards. At present the country is rated at Category 2.
Gumabon noted that a Category 2 status puts the country in the same standard level as many African nations.
The CAAP representative stressed that a holistic approach in aviation standards that would include internationally acceptable security and safety values must first be guaranteed before government opts for an open skies policy to fully liberalize the civil aviation industry.
CAB deputy executive director Porvenir Porciuncula told lawmakers that civil aeronautics is already under a liberalized status because global leaders in commercial aviation have free access to the country.
“Our air agreements already allow flights to most of the points outside Manila. The big markets, Japan, US, China, South Korea, they can operate in Cebu, Davao but what they are looking for is profitability,” said Porciuncula.
The CAB official stressed that the open skies policy should not be taken as a “cure all” to the government’s need to lure more travelers, particularly tourists, to the country.
“Kulang sa atin ay infrastructure and better marketing promotions. Peace and order and air safety is also important,” said Porciuncula.
Aquilino Zapanta of South East Asian Airlines and Socorro Gonzaga of the Philippine Airlines aired opposing positions on the issue.
Zapanta assured the Department of Justice that there are no constitutional infirmities in the bill when it comes to reciprocity.
“We don’t give or provide unilateral traffic rights to any airline into the Philipppines,” Zapanta said.
Gonzaga, PAL senior assistant vice president for external affairs, assured lawmakers that it would support an open skies policy but only if it is fair, reciprocal and would not unduly place local carriers at a disadvantage.
She said foreign carriers enjoy adequate access to Philippine skies, debunking claims there is lack of airline seats to accommodate tourists.
Gonzaga said the country needs more investments in infrastructure, a stable peace and order situation, and positive image abroad to attract tourists.
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