International aviation body resets audit of CAAP

MANILA, Philippines - The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) has postponed its audit of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) to next month, an official said Friday.

“This is sad, we’ve been working hard for this,” CAAP director general Alfonso Cusi said.

In a letter dated Nov. 9, the ICAO’s coordinated validation mission said the postponement was due to “operational concerns.” The CAAP said it found that the ICVM raised issues on the present setup of the local aviation body.

The CAAP said that last Nov. 17, they called ICAO and were told that the “operational reasons relate to the insecurity of ICAO in the sustainability of the present reforms being undertaken by CAAP.”

“The present unclear political announcements of a change in senior management could create, in ICAO’s opinion, an indeterminable future of professional processes within CAAP,” the CAAP quoted an ICAO officer as saying.

The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) shrugged off the postponement, saying it was confident that the CAAP is capable of addressing all the issues on civil aviation, especially after seven persons were appointed to top posts in the body last Nov. 2.

DOTC Undersecretary Dante Velasco named the appointees as Ramon Gutierrez, deputy director for administration; Andres Laurilla, assistant director general in charge of the Civil Aviation Training Center; Napoleon Garcia, deputy director general for operations; and assistant directors general Wilfredo Borja (air traffic services), Andrew Basallote (air navigation services), Edgardo Costes and Wilson Mirabona (aerodrome development and management services).

“We know that CAAP needs all the help that it can get in its effort to address the ICAO (safety and security concerns) and US Federal Aviation Administration downgrade. And these well-qualified appointees can give much help to the CAAP,” he said.