A light bulb moment

The idea is no pipedream. Ang already operates the Caticlan International Airport and failed in an attempt last year to invest further in the airport business by getting control of the Mactan International Airport. With the country’s main hub in Manila, the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, bursting at the seams he has also talked about plans to acquire land and build his own airport with four runways somewhere near the capital. The PAL chief appears to have had a ‘light bulb’ moment after landing at London’s Heathrow airport last year. Ambassador Ahmad said Ang told him his consultants had explained a big airport needed four runways and huge terminals. “But when Ang came to London he realised that Heathrow… is operating with two runways only but it has a very clever technology and good management with just 12 people sitting in the tower and planes taking off every 30 seconds. He said it takes us (in the Philippines) seven minutes between takeoffs and landings to manage the airspace. He said I now realise it’s not about buying lots of land and making four runways and I said, this conversation may just have saved you $2 billion. ” New airports and expansion of existing facilities are sorely needed in the Philippines which, like many countries in Asia, is experiencing a boom in air traffic. The total number of passengers travelling by air climbed 4. 6 per cent to 28. 46 million in the first nine months of last year, with international growing 11. 6 per cent to 13. 05 million. Double-digit growth is set to continue on the international front as the country’s Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) pushes through a major program of expanded air service agreements that will allow more flights. In 2013 it concluded deals with Israel, Japan, Italy, Macau, Brazil and Australia. This year it has already started talks with Singapore and France.

Another breakthrough expected in the near future is the lifting by the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) of its Category 2 rating, imposed on the Philippines five years ago because of safety concerns. It allowsPhilippine airlines to fly to the US but does not allow them to add services or new destinations, or change aircraft type. While all of this is good news the pressure on airports and air traffic management is increasing and getting worse by the day, particularly because of a boom in budget airline traffic. The Philippines is now the low-cost carrier (LCC) capital of the world with eight out of every 10 domestic seats being provided by no-frills operators such as Cebu Pacific, AirAsia Zest, Tigerair Philippines and PAL’s own Airphil Express. PAL itself has handed over most of its domestic routes to Airphil and now operates on only a handful of major city-to-city routes.

All of these airlines are putting increasing numbers of jets into the skies. PAL has ordered 65 new aircraft from Airbus worth $10 billion. Cebu Pacific is in the middle of a $4 billion re-fleeting plan and will take delivery of 15 new A320 types and four A330s through to 2021. It has recently launched long-haul LCC operations with flights to Dubai and has its sights set on services to the US, particularly Hawaii and Guam. Tigerair plans to increase its current fleet of five A320s to 25 over the next three to five years.

While this all looks good for the future of Philippine aviation, there remains plenty to worry about for airlines. Authorities concede foreign tourists have a negative perception of the country as typhoon and earthquake-prone as well as terrorist-infested. Travel and airport infrastructure are substandard, with congested air traffic and runways, plus inadequate air, sea and road connectivity to international gateways such as Manila, Laoag, Clark, Cebu, Davao, Kalibo and Puerto Princesa). All in all, Ang’s attempts to team up with NATS, if successful, would be a big boost holding the promise of a far more efficient airways system. After all, NATS, which is 49 per cent owned by the UK government with another 42 per cent in the hands of a group of seven airlines including British Airways and easyJet, controls two million flights a year in British airspace. It’s just the sort of expertise the Philippines needs.