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Monday, August 21, 2006
Arroyo urged to help ease issuance of airport permits
By Dante M. Fabian
CLARK ECOZONE -- Secretary Edgardo Pamintuan on Sunday asked President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to direct the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) to immediately address the issues and concerns on Foreign Air Carriers Permits (Facps) of low-cost carriers (LCCs) in landing at the Diosdado Macapagal International Airport (DMIA).
Pamintuan's move came following appeals of the local government units (LGUs) and business groups within the Metro Clark area urging the CAB to make easier the policies on the issuance of Facps to LCCs serving the airport.
Pamintuan, chairman of the Subic-Clark Area Development, said Clark International Airport Corporation (Ciac) officials informed him about the continuing dilemma of budget airlines at DMIA in their applications for Facps before the CAB.
"A case in point would be the current predicament of Tiger Airways. Its president Tony Davis (who) personally expressed to Ciac officials his exasperation after his airline's application for Facp was deferred by the CAB board although it had already been endorsed by the Board's Technical Working Group," he said.
He said that Tiger Airways applied for Facp in September 2005. Its present Facp will expire by the end of October this year, thus it cannot sell or accept reservations for November and December this year, which will be the start of the peak season at DMIA.
Meanwhile, the charter permits of other LCCs at DMIA are renewed on a monthly basis pending the processing and approval of their Facps, according to Ciac.
International cargo airlines, whose competitive presence is critical to the vision of a logistics hub at Clark, face similar problems and concerns at DMIA, Pamintuan said.
In its regular session last week, the City Council of Angeles passed a resolution urging President Arroyo to simplify the regulations on the issuance of landing rights to budget airlines operating at DMIA.
The resolution asks Arroyo to direct the concerned government agencies, particularly the CAB, to implement the full intent of Executive Order (EO) 500 to expand air services at DMIA.
Because of the stiff CAB policies, the issuance of Facps has been causing delays on the operations of LCCs in Clark.
Pamintuan said the operations of LCCs in Clark have brought life to the operation of DMIA as an international gateway. He said the possible entry of more LCCs and the growth of their existing operations inside DMIA is hampered/threatened by the inability of the CAB to issue short term, much less long term Facps.
During her past State of the National Address (Sona), the President declared that the development of the Subic-Clark corridor as a "competitive international logistics center" will be her legacy to her "kabalens (province mates)" in Central Luzon.
(August 21, 2006 issue)
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