Palace executive introduced Kuwait company, admits Clark official

CLARK FREEPORT, Pampanga , Philippines  – The chairman of the Clark International Airport Corp. (CIAC) yesterday said a Malacañang official “introduced” Al Mal, a subsidiary of Kuwait’s Al Kharafi, as contractor for the $100-million new terminal project at the Diosdado Macapagal International Airport (DMIA) here.
In a telephone interview, Nestor Mangio, however, did not identify the Palace official who endorsed Al Mal but stressed that “nothing has been signed yet precisely because we could not agree on the terms of reference (TOR).”
This, even as the CIAC board of directors met the other day to give Al Mal seven days within which to accept CIAC’s TOR which exempts Terminal 1 from being taken over by the Kuwaiti firm.
The CIAC’s TOR provided space for the signatures of Mangio and Loay Al Kharafi, identified in the document as the chairman of Al Mal Investment Co.

Contract being rushed?

The contract, according to sources, is allegedly being rushed so it would not be caught by the election ban on the signing of government contracts on March 26. 
Under the proposed TOR, Al Mal, identified as a vehicle of the M.A. Kharafi Group based in Kuwait, “shall develop the Clark civil aviation complex and the more or less 1,500 hectares land adjacent at a minimum investment capitol of $1.2 billion through a joint venture company with CIAC.”   When President Arroyo made an official visit to the Middle East last year, Malacañang issued a news bulletin reporting that the President had secured a $1.2-billion investment from Al Kharafi for a joint venture to build a new airport terminal and aviation city here.
The proposed TOR stated that “it has been agreed that for Phase One, the joint venture company shall develop Terminal 2 at a total investment cost of $100 million with a capacity for seven million passengers per year.”

‘Onerous’ proposal

No one else from CIAC could explain why Al Mal is again being considered for the project despite its proposal being junked in December 2008 by the CIAC’s Joint Venture Special Committee (JVSC) as being “onerous.”
Al Mal has been negotiating for its own version of the TOR, which allocates to itself the sole authority to develop all areas within a 50-mile radius of the airport, as well as full control of the existing Terminal 1, which the CIAC is currently upgrading. 
Al Mal reportedly offered only $20 million for its takeover of Terminal 1 for 45 years, renewable for another 25 years, amid projections that the terminal could generate an income of $120 million during the period.
Apart from Terminal 2, Al Mal also intends to build a third terminal for the DMIA.
CIAC employees went out of their offices the other day to hold a noise barrage to protest Al Mal’s almost full takeover of the aviation complex here, as they feared for their jobs. 
Mangio, however, said he later explained to the employees that part of the negotiations with Al Mal included their continuing employment.
“Only employees of the existing Terminal 1 would be affected,” he added.
Mangio recalled that the Palace “introduced” Al Mal to CIAC executives sometime in 2008, adding that CIAC president Victor Jose Luciano was present then.
Luciano could not be contacted yesterday as he was with some guests.
Mangio said he has been reporting to both President Arroyo and former Trade and Industry Secretary Peter Favila on developments on Al Mal’s bid to get the terminal projects here.
Favila, he said, was the Cabinet member in charge of overseeing foreign investments in the country.
“We had been looking for investors since 2008. There were Chinese, American, Filipino contractors but they all failed to comply with the requirements,” Mangio recalled. Al Mal was among those which failed, he admitted.
Last year, the CIAC, however, again received “unsolicited proposals” that included those from Al Mal. “Al Mal was chosen as the best. We were following all government rules and regulations.”

Rejected anew

A CIAC source, however, said the CIAC board again rejected Al Mal’s proposals only two weeks ago.
Al Mal has reportedly linked up with a local firm called PRIME to comply with the law limiting foreign ownership of public facilities in the country, to justify the requirement of a 70-30 percent joint venture. PRIME was reportedly set up by three businessmen, including Batangas Rep. Hermenigildo Mandanas.
Mandanas and Mangio were among those who were with the President in her visit to Davos, Switzerland last year, sources said.
Sometime in April last year, CIAC expressed “high hopes” on the completion of Terminal 2 amid a proposal from the Pacific Avia Group Inc. (PAGI) which was then being considered.
No CIAC official could immediately be contacted to explain what happened to PAGI.  

‘Midnight deal’

Reacting to the Clark airport issue, opposition senatorial candidate Joey de Venecia yesterday advised President Arroyo to “back off” from the “midnight deal” on the new DMIA terminal.
De Venecia, one of the senatorial bets of the Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino, said Mrs. Arroyo should leave the project to the next administration.
“There appears to be something fishy about the proposal to allow a Kuwaiti firm to take over the airport project,” he said.
“Insiders are confirming that as early as 2008, the CIAC’s Joint Venture Special Committee had already rejected Al Mal’s proposal as onerous. The backroom maneuvers to award the deal to the Kuwaiti firm smacks of a midnight contract aimed as lining the greedy pockets of unscrupulous Palace brokers,” De Venecia said.
He said Mrs. Arroyo “will do well to tell her boys to back off from this deal. They should not forget that the Clark International Airport is dedicated to the memory of her father. They cannot sully his memory with a midnight transaction that may end up to be grossly overpriced and absolutely questionable.”

Cebu Pacific eyes solo slot at T3

BUDGET AIRLINE CEBU PACIFIC WANTS TO be the only carrier in the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) terminal 3 by 2013.
The Gokongwei-led carrier said it plans to grow its passenger base to over 13 million, 12 million in Manila, in the next three years, indicating that airport facilities need to be expanded to prevent any potential squeeze on tourism and trade.
Fueling this growth is the company’s planned acquisition of 10 new Airbus A320 aircraft in the next three years.
“Cebu Pacific’s rapid expansion was substantially helped by its transfer to terminal 3 in August 2008, when nobody else wanted to use it. We could not have grown this much had we stayed at the old domestic terminal, which has a capacity of only two million per year,” Cebu Pacific vice president for brand and marketing Candice Iyog said in a statement.
Terminal 3, she said, provided the space, convenience, and opportunity for the airline to really grow and serve its passengers. “Transiting passengers, for instance, could catch their connecting flights with ease since our domestic and international operations are under one roof, as are other airlines, which put everyone on equal footing,” she said.
“Our population is growing and Asia, including the Philippines, has been tagged as a growth area. We believe that our airports, being the welcoming gateway into our country, should be adequate now and in the future,” she added.
The Manila International Airport Authority (Miaa) has said it plans to spend P40 billion in the next 10 years to expand Manila’s airport capacity to keep up with rising air traffic.
Miaa assistant general manager Tirso G. Serrano said that while Cebu Pacific’s operations alone will eventually be all that terminal 3 can take, the airport authority also had to think about the needs of other airlines flying out of Manila.
Manila’s current airport system, made up of three Naia terminals and the domestic terminal, have a total capacity of 33 million passengers a year. Last year, 24.5 million travelers passed through these four airports.
Last year, Cebu Pacific said it carried over 7.3 million passenger. This is 29-percent higher than its 5.7 million passengers the year before. This year, Cebu Pacific expects to carry more than 10 million passengers on the domestic and regional fronts.

Cusi vows to correct aviation deficiencies

Former airport general manager Alfonso Cusi pledged Wednesday to correct the deficiencies in the country’s civil aviation system as he formally took over the helm at the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) Wednesday, taking over the post vacated by retired General Ruben Ciron.

Last Monday, Cusi was sworn in as the new Director General of the CAAP following his decision to pull out from the congressional race in the second district of Mindoro Oriental.

After simple turnover rites held at the CAAP headquarters in Pasay City, Cusi said his main thrust as the new CAAP chief would be to bring the country back to "Category 1" status.

Back in 2007, the US Federal Aviation Administration conducted an audit of the country's civil aviation system and found it to be non-compliant with the standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). The negative findings resulted in the FAA downgrading the Philippines' status to "Category 2."

An FAA "Category 1" status indicates if a country's civil aviation industry is fully compliant with international aviation safety standards. The FAA performs an audit of the concerned country’s Civil Aviation Authority to ensure its capability to provide safety certification and continue oversight on its international carriers.

The audit team finds out if the CAA is compliant in areas of aviation legislation, operating regulations, civil aviation structure and safety oversight functions, and licensing and certification obligations. Civil aviation authorities who are found not in compliance with the ICAO standards are given a “Category 2” status.

The FAA auditing team found that the then Air Transportation Office (ATO) lacked the authority to conduct safety oversight functions and had deficiencies in licensing and certification regulations.

The negative rating makes it harder for Philippine air carriers to apply for additional or new flights to US destinations.

"I will be addressing these issues head on," Cusi said. "We will work closely with the airline operators and industry players to get the authority on the right track."

"We will correct all the deficiencies found in our system and hopefully get back the "Category 1" status," Cusi said.

RP faces Icao audit in bid to regain ‘1’ status

WITH the threat that Philippine airports may be blacklisted by the European community, newly appointed Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) Director General Alfonso Cusi is scrambling to head for Brussels, Belgium, on March 15 to be able to attend a critical audit by the International Civil Aviation Organization (Icao).

It should have been Ruben Ciron who was to attend until he was replaced by Cusi on Tuesday and, for a while, there was no information on plans of the new chief in attendance at the audit, which would show whether Philippine aviation can be lifted back to Category 1 from Category 2.

Now, taking along top flight-safety advisers and executives of the country’s three major airlines, Cusi is heading for Brussels, saying it would be a great loss if the Philippines is blacklisted by the European Union (EU) for failing to attend the audit from March 15 to 19.

“Our aviation has been downgraded by FAA [Federal Aviation Administration] to Category 2 and it means really bad for all of us. If we are blacklisted, that means that we are disconnecting ourselves [from] the air routes or air highways for our trade and developments,” he said in a press briefing.

To prepare him for the meeting, Cusi was briefed on Wednesday by Eduardo Batac, director of the Flight Service Inspectorate Service and chairman of the International Audit Preparedness Task Force.  

He is to brief Daniel Calleja, the European Union director general for transportation and energy, on what has been achieved by the agency in compliance with their safety concerns aired by the Icao audit team last October 2009.

Batac said that although the Philippines does not fly to Europe at the moment, there are many Europeans who come as tourists or businessmen and so the EU is concerned about their safety.

One of the things brought up by the US FAA, the Icao and the Universal Safety Oversight Audit Program of the EU is the “inability of the Philippines to recruit and retain qualified technical personnel.”

“In the past some highly trained technical personnel were recruited but left for greener pastures,” said Batac.

Cusi cites need for effort of all stakeholders and CAAP to regain Category 1 status

FORMER airport general manager Alfonso Cusi is now the director general of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP), replacing Ruben Ciron.

“I have taken my oath of office in Malacañang on Monday, and I have sent my papers to General Ciron to let him know that I am coming over,” said Cusi. But he quickly added, “I hold him in high esteem and I am not in a hurry to grab his post.”


Cusi said the challenge he faces is to get the country back to Category 1 status and he alone would not be able to do it but through the efforts of all the stakeholders “for the good of the country…one of my first moves is to call a summit of the airline operators, industry players and others to discuss my role at the CAAP. We must agree what rules to be followed and what the aviation authority has to do, which must be known to the people.”

One of the things he has done to achieve his aims is that he has prepared a 100-day plan he would present to the rank and file. “Ayaw kong magmarunong [I don’t want to be a know-it-all],” he said.

Ciron has canceled his scheduled trip to Brussels, Belgium, on March 15 to have a meeting with Daniel Calleja, the European Union (EU) director general for Transportation and Energy, who he was supposed to brief on the progress of CAAP compliance with the “significant safety concern” aired by the International Civil Aviation Organization audit team in October 2009.

His presence in the European Union would signify the Philippines serious concern to address the issue raised by the Universal Safety Oversight Audit Program. “Any disruption of this meeting would send a wrong signal to the EU that the Philippines is not focused in returning the country’s aviation to Category 1 status and that we have taken for granted the seriousness of our dire situation.”

If a negative ruling is given by the EU, airline industries, particularly Philippine international carriers, may be refused further landing rights in foreign destinations, and the tourism industry and other downstream businesses related to air travel and tourism would suffer a devastating fallout.”

He did not say, however, what the government plans to do now that he has cancelled his meeting with Calleja.

Meanwhile, Melvin Matibag had taken over the helm of the MIAA from Cusi. A lawyer, he is the former head executive assistant of Cusi.

Matibag said he would follow the blueprints that had been prepared by his predecessor. “I will continue the projects that are already in the pipeline and that includes getting the ISO for Terminals 1 and 2.” He added that he would also complete the rehabilitation of Terminal 1 and other unfinished facilities to make it an alternative building for Terminal 3, since the latter’s full operation could no longer be guaranteed.

Melvin Matibag appointed as general manager of the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA)

Lawyer Melvin Matibag took over as general manager of the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) Tuesday. He took his oath of office in Malacañang on Monday.
Matibag succeeds Alfonso Cusi, whom Ms Arroyo named the new director general of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP).
Both the MIAA and CAAP are attached agencies of the Department of Transportation and Communications.
Matibag was formerly Cusi’s head executive assistant and the concurrent manager of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3.
The MIAA operates the three NAIA terminals.

Cusi named CAAP chief

MANILA, Philippines - Alfonso Cusi, general manager of the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA), has been named the new head of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP).

Cusi replaces incumbent CAAP Director General Ruben Ciron, who is currently abroad.

The CAAP is the regulatory body responsible for implementing policies on civil aviation to ensure safe, reliable and efficient air transport in the country. It is tasked with ensuring the full integration of civil aviation with the national transport system, taking into account the requirements of national interest and environmental concerns in accordance with International Civil Aviation Organization standards and recommended practices.

Cusi's position in the MIAA will be filled in by his former head executive assistant, Atty. Melvin Matibag.

Cusi, who used to be general manager of the Philippine Ports Authority, recently dropped his candidacy for the second congressional district of Mindoro Oriental.

P400,000 worth of shabu confiscated at Silay City airport

Anti-narcotics agents have arrested a man at Silay City airport in Negros Occidental in possession of P400,000 worth of suspected metamphetamine hydrochloride or shabu.
According to the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency in Region 6, PDEA operatives and airport authorities nabbed suspected drug courier Xavier Louis Rosales at around 7:45 p.m. at the airport in Silay City yesterday.

Rosales reportedly yielded an estimated 40 grams of shabu when accosted by authorities.

Immigration cops thwart human trafficking at NAIA

MANILA, Philippines—Immigration officers at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) have foiled an attempt by an international human trafficking syndicate to smuggle illegal aliens to Canada, using Manila as a transit point.

Bureau of Immigration (BI)-Airport Operations Division director Ferdinand Sampol said the human trafficking operation was thwarted on Monday with the apprehension of the syndicate’s courier and two of its victims at the NAIA.

Immigration Commissioner Marcelino Libanan, said the interception of the victims and the arrest of their courier were the result of proper trainings and use of modern technology.

“This showed that our agency is capable of defeating any attempts by human trafficking syndicates to use the Philippines as their transit point in transporting illegal people,” Libanan said.

Sampol, in a report to Libanan, identified the suspected courier of the syndicate as Joana Lee May Lin, a Singaporean, and her companions as Jeremy Lim Chee Siong and Jimmy Ong Lai Heng, both Chinese nationals.

Sampol said the three passengers were intercepted at the NAIA Terminal 2 before they could board a Philippine Airlines flight bound for Vancouver, Canada on March 1.

BI associate commissioner Enrique Galang presented the three aliens in a news conference at the agency’s main office in Manila on Wednesday. He said Lim and Ong were initially apprehended for trying to leave the country using fraudulent Singaporean passports.

“They arrived in Manila using their original Chinese passports but upon arriving here the syndicates gave them the Singaporean passports,” Galang said.

High Court orders return of Cebu airport property

Victory could prove bittersweet for a Cebu land owner after the Supreme Court finally allowed him to buy back a parcel of land expropriated from him for the supposed expansion of the Mactan-Cebu International Airport in 1961.

However, since the SC ruling came after almost five decades, Bernardo Lozada Sr. and his children would need to shell out a huge amount of money to regain ownership of the so-called Lot 88, which covers some 1,017 square meters.

In a unanimous decision penned by Associate Justice Antonio Eduardo Nachura, the High Court ordered the Air Transportation Office (ATO) to return Lot 88 to the Lozadas.

The court denied the petition filed by the ATO and the MCIA Authority to reverse the decision of the Court of Appeals, which upheld the ruling of the Cebu City Regional Trial Court.

The Cebu City RTC, in its assailed decision dated Dec. 29, 1961, ordered the recovery of possession and reconveyance of ownership of Lot 88 to the Lozadas after the purpose of the expropriation did not materialize.

However, the SC made substantial changes in the lower court decision, which includes an order for the respondents to return to the government the just compensation they received for the expropriation, plus legal interests, to be computed from 1961 up to present.

The Lozadas were also ordered to pay the government the necessary expenses incurred in maintaining Lot 88.

The SC also remanded the case to the Cebu City RTC for the purpose of receiving evidence on the amounts that the Lozadas will have to pay the government based on the High Court’s decision.

At the time the ATO and MCIAA bought the land from the Lozadas, the property was valued at P3 per square meter. The respondents received the amount of P3,018 by way of payment.

In its decision, the SC agreed with the contention of the Lozadas that the government lost its right to the property taken since it did not pursue the public purpose of the expropriation, which is the expansion of the airport.

“If not, it is then incumbent upon the expropriator to return the said property to its private owner, if the latter desires to reacquire the same… Accordingly, the private property owner would be denied due process of law, and the judgment would violate the property owner’s right to justice, fairness and equity,” the court said.

The court further reminded the ATO and MCIA Authority that the taking of private property, consequent to the government’s exercise of its power of eminent domain, is always subject to the condition that the property be devoted to the specific public use for which it was taken.

If the particular purpose or intent is not pursued, and is peremptorily abandoned, the former owners may seek reversion of the property, subject to the return of the amount of just compensation received, the court added.

Clark airport-terminal expansion in full blast, to feature 2 boarding bridges

CLARK FREE PORT, Pampanga—Construction activities for the P308-million expansion of the existing terminal of the Diosdado Macapagal International Airport (DMIA) here are in full blast. The expanded terminal is expected to be operational next month.

Clark International Airport Corp. (CIAC) president and chief executive officer Victor Jose Luciano said in an interview over local radio station dwRW 95.1 yesterday that the newly expanded Terminal 1 will feature two passenger boarding bridges for the added convenience of passengers.

“We expect this to be operational in April and we will invite President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to lead the inauguration of the new expanded terminal on her birthday, April 5,” Luciano said.

He said the two passenger boarding bridges are expected to arrive at the Clark Civil Aviation Complex in Clark Free-port Zone by the end of this month.

The expanded DMIA Terminal 1 will become a two-story building with the boarding bridges, flight information display, closed-circuit television camera, background music, public address system, x-ray machines, escalators and elevators.

Luciano added that the expanded terminal will have a bigger space for commercial concessionaires and a larger lounge for passengers.

The expanded terminal will accommodate an additional 500,000 passengers annually, on top of the current capacity of 2 million passengers annually, increasing its capacity to 2.5 million passengers annually.

Last month President Arroyo inspected the ongoing DMIA Terminal 1 expansion, as well as the other infrastructure projects in Northern Philippines during her Urban Luzon Beltway tour.

As this developed, the CIAC chief also expressed his gratitude to all the stakeholders in this free port for their support, especially for the development of the DMIA which is now host to foreign and local airlines.

“I would like to thank all the stakeholders of Clark, to the Clark Development Corp. and the employees of CIAC for their unwavering support for Clark and the DMIA,” said Luciano, who recently bagged the 2010 AIM Alumni Achievement Award, or Triple A, for his excellent performance that resulted in the development of DMIA.

Despite a slump in the aviation industry last year not only in the Asian region but globally, the passenger volume at the DMIA increased an average of 14 percent, with passenger figures breaching the 600,000 mark.

Luciano said more airlines are expected to start operations at the DMIA following completion of the terminal expansion of which the new facilities will add to the convenience of travelers.

The DMIA is currently host to Asiana Airlines of South Korea that flies to Incheon; the Philippines’ second flag carrier Cebu Pacific Air that services Bangkok, Singapore, Macau and Hong Kong; Air Asia Berhad of Malaysia with flights to Kota Kinabalu and Kuala Lumpur; Tiger Airways of Singapore that flies daily to Singapore; the Spirit of Manila that flies to Taipei; and Southeast Asian Airlines that flies to Caticlan for travelers that would like to go to the island resort of Boracay.

MVP looking at Clark international airport

TELECOM executive Manuel V. Pangilinan on Thursday said Clark International Airport Corp. (CIAC) has approached his group to take interest in the development of a new airport in the free-port zone.

“We’ve been asked to look at the international airport in Clark. We are looking at it. We have been talking to the CIAC to build a new airport. That is the program of the government, I understand,” said Pangilinan at the sidelines of the contract signing between the Philippine Constructors Association (PCA) and the Philippine Disaster Recovery Foundation (PDRF), which Pangilinan chairs.

Pangilinan said talks with the CIAC are “very preliminary” and he also did not say if he has already replied to the proposal. “There’s a change in government. All I know is that the country needs to build a new airport. We have got to build a new one.”

He said existing airports in Manila are old and congested, thus the need to build a new one. “It’s very sad. Most have new and bigger airports such as China, Indonesia and Thailand. The Philippines looks pitiful. The airport here is short, congested and in the middle of the city. We have [to] build a new airport.”

Pangilinan stressed the need to also establish a railway system going to Clark for an easy, fast and convenient way to reach the airport for those coming from Manila. “It is important. It is essential to the project. It’s got to be not just an airport. We have no problem with bus and taxi because you can use the Nlex [North Luzon Expressway]. There should be a high-speed train, otherwise the new airport won’t work,” he added.

Also, Pangilinan said his group is unsure whether to take a second look at the Laiban Dam project following reports that the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) has terminated joint-venture negotiations with San Miguel Corp.’s water subsidiary.

“I just read about it. We are looking at other sources other than Laiban already. So, I guess, in total possibility of options, we don’t know yet,” he said.

He also said the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) Group has no immediate plans to acquire or make new investments anytime soon. “Nothing…let’s digest this first,” Pangilinan said.

For PLDT, Pangilinan said the management will undertake a review on implementing cost-cutting measures.

“There’s a management review that will specifically focus on certain cost-cutting measures that will be undertaken in March. So let’s wait for that. We’re looking at maintenance cost, our rentals and our compensation. I have confidence that the men and women of PLDT and Smart respond to the challenges,” he said.

Pangilinan said last Tuesday that 2010 is another year filled with challenges—“competition shows no signs of abating, consumer wallets are tightening, elections notwithstanding, and alternative means of communications such as social networking.”

“At P41 billion in core net income already, this is a year for us to regroup, refocus and redirect efforts into new directions. We should be back on the growth track starting 2011,” he said.

PLDT reported P41.1 billion in core net income last year against P38.1 billion in 2008.This year the phone giant said it expects to post just over P41 billion in core net income.

Pangilinan said the PLDT Group is cautious as to where the industry is headed this year. Given the high market penetration, the market’s increasing preference for unlimited offers and multiple-SIM ownership, as well as competition from social networking and broadband, Pangilinan said the cellular business faces challenges.

“The market is fast-changing. We want to see where is it really heading? Who  would have imagined that 10 years ago texting would become this big. But now, it has become a plateau. So, where are we headed? Is it broadband?” Pangilinan said.

The PLDT Group’s total cellular subscriber base for 2009 grew to 41.3 million subscribers, a 17- percent growth year-on-year. For 2009, Smart Communications Inc. added 6.1 million subscribers, compared with 5.2 million in 2008. Smart Buddy recorded net additions of over 1.6 million subscribers in the fourth quarter of 2009, to end the year with 24.2 million subscribers while Talk ’N Text added approximately 500,000 subscribers to end 2009 with 17.1 million subscribers.

“I believe the budget is 4.5 million in subscriber net adds this year. But I guess, maybe similar to 6 million last year if the trend in January and February continues. So, probably something closer to 6 million this year the way the first two months are trending,” Pangilinan said .

PLDT president Napoleon Nazareno had said that the trend in subscriber growth for the first two months of the year was the same in January and February of last year. This meant that the group added this year 500,000 new wireless subscribers for January and another 500,000 in February. 

Lawnmower and plane in near miss at Dublin Airport

I just HAD to post this ... only in Ireland ..

A near miss between a ride-on lawnmower and a Boeing 757 landing at Dublin Airport could have had catastrophic consequences, a report has said. The plane, carrying 198 passengers and eight crew, was returning from Sharm-el-Sheikh in Egypt on 29 May last year. The incident was investigated by the Irish Air Accident Investigation Unit. Its final report, which was released on Wednesday, found that the mower did not have adequate radio communications or lighting equipment. Read More

Breastfeeding facility set up at airport

Manila: Manila's international airport in Pasay City has opened a private area for breastfeeding mothers, a senior official said, adding it is part of the government's effort to promote breastfeeding in the Philippines.
"This facility was set up to give mothers a relaxed and secure area where they can nurse their babies free of charge," said airport general manager Alfonso Cusi.
The 32-square-metre breastfeeding station is located after the immigration area for departing passengers. It has four cubicles, each with a bed, swivel chair, drawer, a window and a lockable door, said Cusi, adding the facility was opened in time for the celebration of International Women's Month.
The Philippine Congress recently passed a bill that prevents companies from promoting infant formula.

Next CAAP Director General????

Airport chief quits Mindoro congressional race

MANILA, Philippines -- Manila International Airport Authority General Manager Alfonso Cusi withdrew his candidacy as congressman for the second district of Oriental Mindoro.
In a statement sent to media outfits, Cusi said, “After close consultations with our constituents in Oriental Mindoro, our colleagues at the MIAA and my family, and deep soul-searching and personal reflection, we have decided to withdraw our candidacy as representative in the second congressional district of our province.”
Cusi said he was “considering another position where we can continue serving the national interest and we are truly fortunate to have been given this opportunity.” The other week, Cusi was offered by Malacañang to be the next director general of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines. Cusi did not say on Wednesday if he gave up the congressional race for this position.
“Politics can wait but we cannot turn our back on this singular chance to continue serving the Filipino people in the best way we can. We hope to be able to share with you this new position where we can continue pursuing the national interest at the proper time,” he said.
Cusi thanked his party, the Sandugo Party, “for making the decision-making process less painful for us,” adding, “Their generous understanding enabled us to consider facing a different but broader challenge.”
However, he added that he remained committed to serving the people of Mindoro. He said he will continue to support Sandugo Party in helping improve the quality of life of Mindoro folk.
The second congressional district of Oriental Mindoro is composed of the municipalities of Bansud, Bongabong, Bulalacao, Gloria, Mansalay, Pinamalayan and Roxas. The district has a population of about 335,000 in 2007.
Cusi and six other candidates were supposed to vie for the congressional seat. The other candidates include Securities and Exchange Commission member Thaddeus Venturanza from Lakas-Kampi-CMD, who served as vice governor of the province from 2001 to 2004.
The other candidates are Liberal Party's Reynaldo Umali, Bureau of Customs deputy commissioner and brother of incumbent Rep. Alfonso Umali Jr., who is on his third and final term; Partido ng Masang Pilipino's Ephraim Salcedo, father of former President Joseph Estrada's spokesperson Margaux Salcedo; Anthony Yap of the Nacionalista Party; Edmund Dante Janda of Aksyon; and independent Benrome Abao.

Four more airlines may set up shop at Naia 3

THE MANILA INTERNATIONAL Airport Authority (Miaa) is confident that four new international carriers will start flying out of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) Terminal 3 by the end of the year.

According to Miaa Assistant General Manager Tirso G. Serrano, Terminal 3 is currently being used at half capacity and it will be necessary to utilize more of the facility to address the continuing growth in the number of people using Manila’s airports.

About 24.5 million people used Manila’s four airports in 2009. This is an increase of about 11 percent over the 22 million people the previous year. Manila’s airport system is comprised of the three Naia terminals and the Manila Domestic Passenger terminal.

Naia 3 was opened in July 2008. Last year, about 7.5 million people used it—just half of the airport’s capacity of 13 million people a year.

At that time, only three carriers—Cebu Pacific, Philippine Airlines (PAL) Express and its sister company Air Philippines—started operations at the new terminal.

Also, work still needs to be done in parts of Naia 3.

“Completion works are being stepped up. It should be ready to accommodate new international airlines,” Serrano said in a recent interview. “Within the year, we are confident that we can get two to four international airlines in Naia 3.”

This year, Serrano said, the number of passengers passing through Manila’s four airports would continue to grow at a double-digit rate, due to the tourism-driven increase in domestic air travel.

With the opening of Naia 3, the airport authority succeeded in decongesting Manila’s airport system, which used to serve 20 million passengers a year—well above its capacity of 18 million passengers a year at the time.

But legal issues over Naia 3’s ownership are still unresolved.

A build-operate-transfer contract for the terminal was granted to Philippine International Air Terminals Co. Inc. (Piatco) and German partner Fraport AG. But the Supreme Court later nullified the contract because of anomalies.

The government then took over the terminal from the original contractor in exchange for an initial compensation of P3 billion, which the government paid Piatco in 2006.

Piatco has sued the government before international arbitration courts for illegally scrapping the contract.

No widowmaker tag on our planes, please—PAF

The Philippine Air Force (PAF) on Thursday appealed to the media and the public to refrain from using the terms “widowmaker" and “flying coffins" in describing its mostly secondhand aircraft.

“Ako ay nagre-request sa ating kasamahan na siguro, kung pwede, ma-delete ang branding na widowmaker at saka flying coffin sapagkat ito ay nakakaapekto sa morale ng ating air crew," said PAF spokesman Lt. Col. Gerardo Zamudio in an interview on dwIZ radio.

(I'm making a request that maybe, if possible, please delete the branding [of our planes] as widowmakers and flying coffins because it affects the morale of our air crew.)

Zamudio said their families have been traumatized by such branding. “Every time na lilipad kami, kung ‘yan ay palaging nakatatak sa isipan, magiging trauma sa parte nila," he said.

(Even our families are traumatized if such terms are always imprinted in their minds, especially whenever we go on flying missions.)

Zamudio made the appeal a day after an OV-10 Bronco plane crashed in Tarlac province, killing its two pilots. Last month, eight soldiers, including a general, died when a military Nomad plane crashed in a residential area in Cotabato City.

PAF investigators are now determining the cause of the OV-10 crash, the seventh involving such aircraft. Zamudio said the remaining two OV-10 aircraft would be grounded pending the result of the investigation.

Despite the crash, Zamudio insisted that all their aircraft are well-maintained. “Kung ano ang bigay sa atin ng gobyerno, papangalagaan natin ito para ma-perform ang ating mission."

(Whatever the government provides us, we do our best to maintain them just so we can perform our mission.)

The OV-10 that crashed last Wednesday was a secondhand unit from the Royal Thai Air Force manufactured on June 16, 1971.

Zamudio said the investigation into Wednesday’s crash would be “very tedious" that would require checking the instruments of the crash plane and interviewing the range officer to determine the circumstances that could have led to the accident.

Bacolod eyeing airport terminal fee discounts for seniors

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Bacolod City is planning to give a 20 percent terminal fee discount to senior citizens flying from its airport.

Bacolod City Mayor Evelio Leonardia made the request on Wednesday through a letter addressed to the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP).

Leonardia cited complaints from senior citizens who are disallowed from enjoying the 20 percent discount when they fly out of the Bacolod-Silay Airport Terminal, a report on news site Visayan Daily Star on Thursday said.

Since senior citizens get this discount when they buy their airfare, they should also be given the same benefit on their airport fees, he said.

The mayor argued the terminal fees also form part of their traveling expenses.

He also cited reports that the Mactan International Airport in Cebu grants a 20-percent discount on terminal fees for domestic senior citizen passengers flying out of its terminal.

Leonardia said he will follow up the matter with the office of the CAAP Director General.

Philippines - PGMA orders CAAP to resolve US-FAA downgrade of RP’s aviation ratings

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has directed the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) to immediately resolve the civil aviation ratings downgrade of the Philippines by the US Federal Aviation Authority (US-FAA) so that the country can capitalize on the rebound of international travel and the corresponding global tourism boom.

Talking to reporters covering President Arroyo’s inspection of the tourism-related projects in the Central Philippines Super Region, Tourism Secretary Joseph Ace Durano said the President wants the FAA ratings downgrade issue to be resolved at once.

“Her guidance to the CAAP is that the sooner the issue is resolved, the better for us so we can take advantage of the rebounding international routes,” Durano added.

Durano said the President wanted CAAP (headed by Ruben Ciron) to infuse more technical experts in the agency to overcome the concerns on aviation safety standards in the country

FAA, the US aviation watchdog, downgraded in 2007 the Philippine aviation ratings from Category I to Category 2 along with countries like Bangladesh, Ivory Coast, Ghana and Indonesia due to concerns about air safety operations which, it said, were not compliant with International Civil Aviation Organization standards.

Durano said the President took note of the rebounding global economies, which means more travel by citizens of countries whose economic conditions are improving.

He added that national carrier Philippine Air Lines’ planned expansion of flights to and from North America through its Boeing-777 jumbo jet, the world’s largest twin jet; fleet has been stunted due to the downgrade.

“The FAA downgraded us to Category 2 and because of that, we cannot maximize our opportunities coming from North America, especially now that Philippine Air Lines has new 777 and we cannot use it for this route,” Durano said.

Durano stressed that a contributing factor to the FAA downgrade was the lack of the technical personnel for specific CAAP functions.

Manila’s air safety rating seen raised by end-June

THE Philippines expects the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to upgrade Manila’s aviation safety standards in the second quarter of the year.
Ruben Ciron, Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) director general, told reporters that the FAA would upgrade the country’s rating from Category 1 to Category 2.
The Philippine rating was downgraded in December 2007.

Category 2 means the country’s civil aviation authorities do not provide safety oversight of its air carriers in accordance with the minimum safety oversight standards of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), a specialized agency of the United Nations created in 1944 to promote the safe and orderly development of international civil aviation throughout the world.

Among the FAA’s concerns were outdated aviation regulations, poor training programs for safety inspectors, and sub-standard licensing for airframe and engine inspectors.

“We are going to invite them by March or April for initial technical review then we will invite the group for the inspection proper,” Ciron said.

He said other requirements such as the Air Traffic Services, Air Navigation Services and Air Development Management Services had passed the FAA standard.

“But, the problem when the audit was held in October [last year] was that we do not have yet the qualified technical personnel,” he said.

The CAAP head said the agency expects the Civil Service Commission (CSC) to approve the hiring standards for the Flight Standard Inspectorate Service by March or April.

Flag-carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) had said the downgrade put off its plan to open services to San Diego, Chicago, New York and Saipan.

Under Category 2, PAL is prohibited from increasing its 33 flights a week to the US and its territories, as well as from changing the type or increasing the number of aircraft used on these routes.

PAL’s operations to the US mainland account for 30 percent of its total revenue. The airline flies to Los Angeles 11 times a week, to San Francisco nine times, to Las Vegas via Vancouver five, to Honolulu three and to Guam five.