Regulation knows no borders

Philippine Airlines’ regulatory ordeals a case-in-point

Airlines in the Philippines and particularly national flag carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) may soon be able to emerge from the safety wilderness. The word from Montreal is that an International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) safety audit – the results will be announced late May or early June – will finally give the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) a clean bill of health.

Getting there has been a long haul. The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) downgraded the Philippines from Category 1 to Category 2 way back in 2008, based on an ICAO report citing significant safety issues within the regulatory authority, including a serious lack of oversight and inability to properly check airline operations.