Phl to regain Category 1 status from FAA - DOTC executive

MANILA, Philippines - A ranking official of the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) yesterday expressed confidence that the Philippine aviation sector is on track in its efforts to regain its Category 1 status with the US Federal Aviation Authority (FAA).

“We are hopeful that we will be able to get back the FAA’s Category 1 rating within the year or early next year,” Glicerio Sicat, DOTC Undersecretary for Civil Aviation and Railways, said in a statement.

This will allow the country’s airlines to expand their capacity and increase the frequency of their flights to the United States and Europe.

The FAA downgraded the Philippines to Category 2 from Category 1 in December 2007 after a safety audit found some policies of the local aviation sector to be below international standards.

Another problem faced by the Philippine aviation sector is the issuance of significant safety concerns (SSC) on the country’s civil aviation systems by the United Nations international aviation watchdog, the International Civil Aviation Organization, in December 2009.

Sicat said that of the 22 items identified by the FAA as safety concerns, only two remain unresolved. These are the lack of qualified safety personnel and the absence of an integrated information technology (IT) system to modernize the sector’s database.

To address the issue on the lack of qualified technical personnel, the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) hired 22 former pilots to serve as full-time Flight Standards Inspectorate Service (FSIS) inspectors.

Due to salary issues, very few pilots are willing to serve in government, Sicat explained.

“Thankfully, these former but seasoned pilots, who are now being trained at the CAAP, are willing to share their experience and expertise as a way to serve the country,” Sicat said.

The CAAP likewise tapped the services of retired Brig. Gen. Tim Neel, a former FAA executive and owner and managing director of Tim Neel and Associates, LLC., to help them in their aviation programs.