Saudi jetliner veers off Philippine airport runway

A Saudi Arabian Airlines jetliner veered off the runway at the Philippines' main international airport on Tuesday (Aug 5), causing a delay in at least 11 flights, airport officials said.

None of the 298 passengers on the Boeing 747-400 plane were hurt after the landing gear got stuck in mud near the runway, but fire and rescue teams had to lift it out and tow it away, said airport spokeswoman Jen Franco.

The plane was making a turn on the runway, preparing to take off for Riyadh when the mishap occurred. Airport officials were blaming the incident on "technical problems," she said.

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San Miguel eyes Philippine Airlines buyout

Philippine conglomerate San Miguel said Thursday it hopes to take full control of the country's flag carrier within two months by buying out its local partner. San Miguel in 2012 bought a 49 per cent stake in Philippine Airlines (PAL) US$500 million from LT Group, a holding firm controlled by tobacco tycoon Lucio Tan.

In a statement to the stock exchange San Miguel confirmed local news reports that its president Ramon Ang and PAL were "hopeful" it could buy out the rest of the carrier's shares by the end of September. PAL issued an identical statement to the exchange. Ang and the LT Group had earlier disclosed they were in talks over a possible buy-out of the airline, whose parent PAL Holdings suffered a net loss of US$205.15 million in the nine months to December 2013.

The airline's prospects have improved since the US Federal Aviation Administration removed the Philippines from its air safety blacklist in April, opening the door for Filipino carriers to expand services to the United States. The FAA decision came after the European Union in July last year lifted its own ban on PAL following an upgrade of safety standards. Under Ang, San Miguel, originally a Southeast Asian beer and food giant, has diversified into a wide variety of fields including infrastructure, energy and oil refining.

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Asia tourist boom fuels airport binge

Faced with snaking queues at immigration, overflowing baggage carousels and expensive flight delays, Asian nations are rushing to build hundreds of new airports to cope with surging demand for air travel in the region.

From China and India to the Philippines and Indonesia, the fast-growing middle classes are looking to spend their cash by spreading their wings, leading to a boom in the Asia-Pacific region's tourism sector. Airlines have responded by setting up several new budget carriers and flying new routes -- but many airports are unable to cope, forcing governments to either expand or simply build new airports.

"Through the next 10 years, we see more than 350 new airports in the Asia-Pacific and the investment cost will be well over $100 billion," said Chris De Lavigne, a global vice president at business consultancy Frost & Sullivan Asia Pacific.

"China is building over 100 airports, India is building over 60 airports and Indonesia will also have to follow suit with investments in its infrastructure," said De Lavigne, who closely tracks Asia's aviation industry.

Upgrades of existing airports could cost an additional $25 billion, he told AFP by telephone from his office in Jakarta. International tourist arrivals in Asia-Pacific grew an annual 6.0 per cent to 248 million last year, the strongest of any region worldwide, according to the UN World Tourism Organization. To cope with this, construction is being ramped up.

The Canada-based Airports Council International (ACI) said in a report that Indonesia plans to build 62 new airports in the next five years, in addition to its existing 237. Soekarno-Hatta in Jakarta is improving capacity after handling 60 million passengers last year, nearly three times what it was designed for, ACI said.

And Kuala Lumpur aims to double capacity to 100 million a year by 2020, while Hong Kong wants to handle 97 million annually by 2030, up from 60 million in 2013. In Beijing -- which already has a hub servicing 80 million people -- a second, $11 billion airport is being built to open in 2018 and handle 40 million passengers, Sydney-based consultancy Centre for Aviation said.

There are also plans for a full replacement of Manila's Ninoy Aquino International Airport, one of Asia's most notorious for overcrowding and backward facilities. Its Terminal 1, which is undergoing a major makeover, was built in 1981 to handle six million passengers a year. Together with two extension terminals, the airport handled around 30 million passengers in 2013.

Even Singapore's Changi -- regarded by many as one of the world's best -- is expanding, with a $1.0 billion Terminal 4 opening in 2017 that will raise capacity to 82 million passengers from the current 54 million. Plans are already being made for a Terminal 5.

Shukor Yusof, an analyst with Malaysia-based Endau Analytics, said airport infrastructure in many countries has lagged well behind travel growth.

"Many governments have paid scant attention to developing new terminals and new tarmacs, that's why you find that many of the airports are bursting at the seams," he said.

The focus is not just on capitals. The need for more space means much of the new construction is taking place in secondary cities, with some facilities potentially becoming hubs.

De Lavigne cited the Kualanamu International Airport in Indonesia's Medan, which opened last July and could become a hub for flights to Malaysia, Thailand, Myanmar, India and China. It was designed to handle eight million passengers a year but is already at capacity, he said.

"By 2025, they're forecasting 24 million passengers out of Medan, or a three-fold increase in just over 10 years," De Lavigne said, adding that Indonesia's aviation sector alone is growing 14-15 per cent a year.

Even less developed tourist destinations are pressing ahead with building. Myanmar -- returning to the global fold after decades of isolation -- is looking to upgrade 39 airports as tourist and domestic air passenger figures are seen surging to 30 million in 2030 from 4.2 million in 2013, the ACI said.

The government is also building a new $1.5 billion Hanthawaddy International Airport to serve as Yangon's second airport, it added.

Bangladesh is constructing a new airport costing up to $7.2 billion about 60 kilometres (37 miles) from Dhaka, ACI said. Funding from governments and the private sector does not appear to be a problem.

"There's a lot of liquidity out there. There's a lot of money in project financing," Shukor said.

Airports are now even targeting non-travellers, with the current trend for "aeroparks and aerotropolises" integrating lifestyle amenities, attracting diners and shoppers who won't even board flights.

"You get people who don't fly to come into the airports for food, shopping and other lifestyle activities. That trend which started in the West is increasingly finding its way into Asia," De Lavigne said.

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Typhoon Rammasun causes SIA plane to hit aerobridge

Singapore Airlines (SIA) confirmed that one of its aircraft parked at the Manila International Airport "came into contact" with an aerobridge due to strong winds from Typhoon Rammasun on Wednesday (July 16).

Responding to queries by Channel NewsAsia, a SIA spokesperson said: "There were no passengers or crew on board at that time and our engineers will assess the aircraft when weather conditions permit.

Alternative travel arrangements are being made for those who were affected as well. "Passengers who are booked on SQ915 for July 16 will be accommodated accordingly in order to minimise disruption to their travel plans," the spokesperson said.

Twitter user @raoulesperas posted an image, and stated that the left wing and engine of the plane were damaged though.

Typhoon Rammasun, locally known as Glenda, caused the Philippine capital to shut down on Wednesday, and authorities said the typhoon claimed at least one life and forced hundreds of thousands to evacuate. Wind gusts of up to 250 kilometres an hour (km/h) were recorded, and intense rain affected those in the city as well as remote fishing villages after the typhoon blew in on Tuesday night.

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Tigerair sells 40% stake in Philippine unit to Cebu Pacific

Singapore budget carrier Tigerair is divesting its 40 per cent interest in loss-making Tigerair Philippines to Cebu Pacific for US$7 million (S$8.9 million).

In a filing with the Singapore Exchange on Wednesday, a joint statement by both the carriers said this is part of their plans for a wide-ranging strategic alliance.

Tigerair and Cebu Pacific intend to collaborate commercially and operationally on international and domestic air routes from the Philippines, thereby creating the biggest network of flights to the region.

Subject to regulatory approval, the two partners will jointly operate common routes between Singapore and the Philippines.

By combining resources, Cebu Pacific will be able to provide services to high growth markets including Australia and India.

Tigerair will be able to fly more passengers to additional cities in Cebu Pacific's network in the Philippines and North Asia. This arrangement will allow both airlines to deploy capital more efficiently.

Following the acquisition of the 40 per cent stake in Tigerair Philippines, Cebu Pacific will have full ownership of the airline.

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Philippines expects to be lifted from US air blacklist

The Philippines expects to be removed from a US air safety blacklist this year, opening a lucrative market for its carriers, an aviation regulator said Thursday.

John Andrews, deputy director-general of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP), said he was very confident the upgrade would occur following a similar decision by the European Union last week.

"We're going to make it. (It's) as simple as that," Andrews told AFP in an interview.

The US Federal Aviation Administration said in 2008 that the Philippines was failing to comply with international safety standards, and banned its airlines from expanding services to the United States.

The European Union banned all Philippine carriers from flying to Europe in 2010 for similar reasons.

Reforms put in place since then, including a law creating a new aviation regulator, the CAAP, allowed the Philippines to satisfy the concerns of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) in February.

This led to the EU's decision last week to allow Philippine Airlines to begin flying into its airspace. The EU said it was reviewing the case of other Filipino carriers.

Andrews said he expected US aviation regulators to make similar findings when it carried out an audit before the end of the year.

He said Filipino regulators had addressed safety concerns by physically tracking down every aircraft registered in the Philippines and getting their owners to submit documentation.

This was to make sure the CAAP stopped the illegal practice of cannibalising old aircraft to supply parts for planes of the same make that were still flying, he said.

He said the CAAP also had to update records on the air-worthiness of all civilian aircraft serving Philippine airspace.

Andrews said the law that created the CAAP, also in 2008, allowed it to offer higher salaries than other government agencies to its air safety inspectors.

This was important so the inspectors, now being paid more than triple their 2008 salaries, could resist bribes to certify all aircraft as air-worthy.

Andrews said that apart from Philippine Airlines, other local carriers such as Cebu Pacific wanted to fly to the United States.

"They will all compete because it's a rich market," he said.

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After the EU, PAL is hoping the US will also clear it to fly into their airspace when the audit is being carried out later this year. The next step for them is probably to purchase more aircraft to meet this surge in demand.

European Union lifts safety ban on Philippine Airlines

The European Union has lifted a three-year ban on Philippine Airlines flying into its airspace after the national carrier addressed safety concerns, the EU's ambassador to Manila said on Wednesday.

PAL will be allowed to fly into the 28-member bloc from Friday, which will spur tourism and business links, ambassador Guy Ledoux said.

"This is a tremendous achievement in such a short period of time," Ledoux said.

He added that the EU would conduct further reviews so other Philippine carriers would also be able to fly to Europe as well.

"This decision is very encouraging and is the first success of CAAP (Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines) and Philippine Airlines," he told reporters.

"EU-Philippines trade and investment relations will benefit from the lifting of the air ban," Ledoux added.

He remarked that even without direct flights, European tourist arrivals to the Philippines rose by about 10 percent last year to 349,000 and expressed hope that the lifting of the ban would boost this even further.

CAAP director-general William Hotchkiss said raising safety standards had required "superhuman effort" including recruiting veteran talent.

He also expressed confidence that by the end of the year, the US Federal Aviation Administration would lift a similar ban that restricts Philippine carriers from expanding operations to the United States.

PAL president Ramong Ang told reporters at a joint press conference with Ledoux that the carrier planned to begin flights to London, Paris, Rome and Amsterdam by September or October.

He said PAL could compete with lower-cost Mideast airlines in serving those routes because it would offer non-stop flights.

PAL is already entitled to seven flights a week to London and at least six flights a week to Paris, Ang said.

He said the airline would enter into negotiations for the other destinations.

Ledoux said the safety ban on other Philippine carriers may also be lifted amid a general improvement in the country's aviation standards and positive work by the CAAP.

However he said that the EU ban on Cebu Pacific, a second major Philippine carrier, had been maintained because of an incident last month where a Cebu Pacific plane skidded off a runway while landing in the southern Philippine city of Davao.

He said this "unfortunate recent accident in June... shows some weaknesses need to be addressed."

None of the 165 people aboard the plane were hurt but CAAP later suspended the two pilots involved and harshly criticised Cebu Pacific for safety lapses.

Ledoux said the European Commission was encouraged by the actions being taken by CAAP and Philippines air carriers to address outstanding safety issues and would continue to monitor the situation closely.

Cebu Pacific said in a statement that it hoped to take part in the next EU air safety commission meeting later this year and continues to look at opening services to "parts of Europe and the US".

The EU announced in March 2010 that it had banned all Philippine airlines from flying into Europe for "serious and persistent non-compliance" with the bloc's air safety rules.

The US issued its ban on the Philippines expanding its operations in 2008.

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This is good news for PAL. They're now able to extend their network into EU airspace. However, the ban continues for Cebu Pacific after they failed to react adequately to a crash weeks ago.

Philippine pilots slammed over runway accident

Philippine aviation authorities on Tuesday suspended two pilots from budget carrier Cebu Pacific after their plane overshot a runway, saying they should have aborted the landing and failed to evacuate the aircraft which could have exploded.

The plane skidded off the runway in bad weather on June 2, coming to a halt on muddy ground beside the tarmac at the airport in the southern city of Davao.

All 165 people on board escaped unharmed, but angry passengers have criticised the pilots and crew, saying they were given no assistance despite the turmoil inside the plane after the terrifying landing.

Releasing the results of an initial investigation, the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) criticised the two pilots for a series of lapses.

The authority's deputy director John Andrews said they should have aborted the landing when they realised the plane was not coming down at the correct angle.

And once the plane was on the ground, the pilots failed to immediately evacuate the passengers, leaving them on board for 15 minutes during which time the aircraft could have erupted in flames.

"In cases like this, you immediately initiate emergency evacuation. You don't know if the plane will explode or if the fuel lines were cut and there will be a fire," Andrews told reporters.

The chief pilot was suspended for six months and barred from serving as captain on a plane for a year, while his co-pilot was suspended for three months.

Cebu Pacific will also be asked to comply with an "action plan" which stresses safety over cost-cutting, Andrews said, adding that shaving down turnaround time between flights could cause mistakes to happen.

"When you speed things up, you sometimes forget something," he said. "We can say Cebu Pacific is safe. We just want to make it more safe."

CAAP officials said the airline could still face additional fines for the damage and losses caused to the airport.

Cebu Pacific said in a statement that it would comply with all the aviation authority's recommendations and would improve its training procedures, putting a new emphasis on safety.

The airline began commercial operations in 1996, attracting customers by offering cut-rate fares to local destinations.

It has expanded operations in recent years, now flying to many major Asian cities. Cebu Pacific boasts that it carries more passengers than any other airline in the Philippines.

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This is very poor safety practice from the crew in the airplane, putting all lives at risk with their incompetence. It is no wonder both pilots are suspended with the captain receiving a heavier punishment for his lack of situational awareness. Was training provided by the airline sufficient to handle such situations? If yes, why did the pilots do nothing? If no, then safety concerns are a very big suspect in the airline.

Cebu Pacific probed for rough landing

Philippine aviation authorities are investigating the rough landing of a Cebu Pacific aircraft after passengers were forced to wait some 15 minutes to get off the disabled aircraft.

The Airbus A320-200 overshot the runway on Sunday in stormy weather and landed on its nose. Davao International Airport remains closed because of the stuck plane.

Civil Aviation Authority Deputy General John Andrews said today (June 4) that the pilots’ error probably caused the accident. None of the 165 passengers was injured, but several complained about the slow response.

Davao Mayor Sara Duterte said that the airport delayed alerting city emergency services and denied quick access to the passengers.

Cebu Pacific President Lance Gokongwei has apologised but defended the crew.

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It's a good thing there is no casualty involved in this incident, that is the most crucial factor.

AirAsia's Philippine unit buys into rival

The Philippine unit of regional budget airline leader AirAsia announced on Monday it had acquired 49 percent of local carrier Zest Airways, allowing it to fly out of the nation's capital.

The deal will also see Zest Airways' owner, tycoon Alfredo Yao, take 15-percent stake of Philippines' AirAsia, a company statement said.

The alliance will allow Philippines' AirAsia, which has operated from an airport 90 minutes' drive north of Manila since launching in 2011, to fly out of the capital's main international airport.

"This will allow us to leverage on our respective strengths, which in the case of Zest Air, include its operations out of (Manila)," Philippines' AirAsia chief executive officer Marianne Hontiveros said in the statement.

Philippines' AirAsia chairman Antonio Cojuangco said the partnership would lift both companies, citing "the Philippines aviation market('s) tremendous upside potential".

The Philippines has recently seen a boom in air traffic with its largest airlines, local budget pioneer Cebu Pacific and flag-carrier Philippine Airlines implementing multi-billion-dollar fleet expansions.

The government is aiming for tourist arrivals to increase from 4.2 million last year to 10 million in 2016.

The two airlines will continue separate operations for now, but will be able to share facilities and resources, Philippines' AirAsia spokeswoman Genefer Bugarin-Tan said.

She would not disclose how much the deal had cost.

Philippines' AirAsia is 40 percent owned by Malaysia's AirAsia Berhad, the region's biggest budget carrier in terms of fleet size, while the balance is owned by prominent Filipino business leaders.

It currently flies from its base north of Manila to Singapore, Hong Kong, Taipei and Kuala Lumpur, as well as two popular local tourist destinations.

Zest Air operates from Manila and the central city of Cebu. It flies to 14 cities in the Philippines as well as 10 international destinations, including cities in South Korea, China, Taiwan and Malaysia.

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A big move by AirAsia to swallow more market share in the Filipino market and they should rightly do so. Massive air traffic is predicted coming out of this country as its affluence rises and more investors pour into the country.