Solons, PAL opposed to ‘open skies’ policy

By Michael Lim Ubac
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 20:13:00 12/01/2010

Filed Under: Air Transport, Tourism

MANILA, Philippines—Lawmakers are supporting Philippine Airlines’ opposition to the open skies policy that the Aquino administration is pursuing in order to increase tourist arrivals.

President Benigno Aquino announced the open skies policy at the opening of the public-private partnerships and infrastructure conference last month.

He told foreign and local business leaders that his government would pursue the full implementation of EO 219 (the liberalization of air travel industry) in international aviation.

The Department of Tourism is targeting to attract 3.1 million tourists in 2009, progressively increasing to six million by 2016.

Aquino said the liberalization would be done gradually, starting with “what is called pocket open skies.”

However, PAL and House members at the hearing seemed lukewarm even to a partial open skies policy.

An official of the Civil Aeronautics Board told the hearing that open skies would not ensure more passengers.

Porvenir Porciuncula, CAB deputy executive director, said many foreign airlines have obtained numerous seat entitlements, but have not been actually flying to secondary gateways or key cities outside of Metro Manila like Davao, Cebu or Cagayan.

“It is really a function of the market. Open skies will not guarantee foreign airline flights to the country. The more urgent thing is to address infrastructure, facilities, the image of country abroad,” he said.

A representative of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines said that while the country remained in the aviation blacklists, any law that would open up the country’s skies would be toothless because of lingering safety concerns at the airports.

This prompted some lawmakers to raise the possibility of shelving the bills calling for open skies.
Ma. Socorro Gonzaga, PAL assistant vice president for external affairs, also said that foreign carriers have been enjoying adequate access to Philippine skies.

At present, 47.4 million seats are available to foreign and local carriers, but only 10.97 million seats, or 23 percent, were used in 2009, according to Gonzaga.