Angara pushes for Civil Aviation Authority

Senator Edgardo Angara is pushing for the passage of the Civil Aviation Authority Act, which establishes a single, centralized, and autonomous civil aviation authority in the Philippines.

According to Senator Edgardo Angara, the new Civil Aviation Authority functions as "a regulatory agency, charged with creating and implementing rules that will promote the aviation industry in the country while emphasizing aviation safety at all times."

Senator Angara, who co-sponsored this bill with Senator Juan Ponce Enrile, pointed out that

"Currently, we have an Air Transportation Office (ATO) charged with matters of civil aviation. This attached agency, however, does not meet the International Civil Aviation Organization's (ICAO) standards."

"Earlier this year, the Federal Aviation Authority, after conducting the International Aviation Safety Assessment [1], presented serious concerns over the ATO's ability to conduct consistent, effective safety oversight. The ATO is not able to meet the ICAO standards [2] , particularly the minimum standards of the Convention on International Civil Aviation. This convention requires a centralized civil aviation authority, already established in many countries," explained Senator Angara.

"If this continues, our civil aviation system will be downgraded to category 2 status," warned Senator Angara.

Aviation systems with a category 2 status shall be under heightened FAA surveillance, and its carriers will not be allowed to expand or change its services to the US.

"This is a huge disadvantage to the Philippines , especially now that we have the capacity to become Asia 's next flight-training capital," said Senator Angara.

The Senator had earlier signaled this opportunity for the Philippines, calling it "a golden opportunity for the Philippines."

"Recent study shows that the center of aviation industry in the world is shifting towards India and East China. Already, China recruits 1,000 pilots every year and India will need 4,000 in the next five years. [3] We cannot seize this opportunity if our civil aviation system is downgraded to a Category 2 status," said Senator Angara.

The creation of a civil aviation authority will also comply with the Philippines's commitments to the Convention of International Civil Aviation, and the RP-US Service Agreement.

[1] The objective of the IASA is to determine that each country meets its obligations under ICAO and to provide proper oversight to each air carrier operating in to the United States.

[2] The ICAO standards which the ATO was said to have not complied with are in the following areas: (1) specific operating regulations, (2) technical guidance, (3) qualified technical personnel, (4) licensing and certification, (5) continued surveillance obligations, and (6) resolution of safety issues

[3] Based on the paper entitled "The Air Transport Industry" (2007) International Air Transport Association