Low-cost airlines at Clark to get perks

CLARK FIELD, Pampanga — President Arroyo has tasked the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) to draft an executive order proclaiming the Diosdado Macapagal International Airport (DMIA) here as a  "development route."

As such, low-cost international airlines catering mostly to overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) will be granted long-term flying permits, amid recent cases of flight delays and suspensions.

Meanwhile, the Clark Development Corp. (CDC), which runs the Clark special economic zone hosting the DMIA, said the President has approved a P900-million expansion of the airport’s passenger terminal to be done by a Kuwaiti group under the build-operate-transfer scheme.

The expansion project is expected to be completed by 2015.

The President, according to the CDC, issued the order to the DOTC during a meeting of the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) board and the CDC at Malacañang.

"The EO will (give) international passenger airlines operating at the DMIA more flexibility in securing permits and avoid stalled flights at the Clark airport, like the recent cancellation of a Tiger Airways flight from Clark to Macau," the CDC said.

With the number of passengers at the DMIA increasing from 6,000 to 35,000 monthly, the Clark International Airport Corp. (CIAC) earlier urged Malacañang to issue an EO to ease the burden of budget airlines by granting them flight permits for longer periods instead of monthly basis.

Apart from Tiger Airways, the DMIA also hosts South Korea’s Asiana Airlines, Malaysia’s Air Asia, Hong Kong’s China Rich and HK Express, Taipei’s Far Eastern Transport Corp., and local carrier SEAIR.

There are a total of 39 international flights at the DMIA weekly.

Earlier this month, 1,500 passengers, mostly OFWs bound for Macau, were stranded when the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) cancelled three flights of Tiger Airways after the airline failed to renew its flight permit for January.

Danilo Francia, CIAC president and chief executive officer, told The STAR that the CIAC is helping finalize a draft of the EO that would amend provisions in the government’s "liberalized" skies policy at the DMIA.

Francia said the proposal would encourage more international flights at the DMIA and enable the CIAC to generate enough income to overcome its current P128-million deficit.

"Our deficit is primarily due to payments on loans used to upgrade the airport," he said.

The loans went to a $9.4-million aviation radar which is expected to be fully installed this June, and the P250-million upgrading and expansion of the airport taxiway, among other projects.

Francia said Tiger Airways was earlier granted a temporary flight permit effective up to Jan. 20.

He said the CAB did not issue a permit for the entire month of January due to Tiger Airways’ failure to pay penalties and comply with certain "tariff rate requirements."

This month, Asiana Airlines increased its flights between Clark and Incheon, South Korea from five times weekly to daily.

"There is an increase in the number of Koreans flying into Clark because of the cold winter in their country," Francia said.

Francia said Air Asia has plans of launching regular flights between Clark and Bangkok after it has upgraded its aircraft from a Boeing 737, which can carry 150 passengers, to an Airbus 320, which can accommodate 180 people.

He said a joint committee composed of representatives of the CIAC, CDC, NEDA, DOTC and the Ninoy Aquino International Airport is set to finish this year a detailed study on a proposed world-class international passenger terminal for the DMIA based on a master plan completed last year.

Francia said the new passenger terminal is expected to be fully operational by 2015 and will cost between P800 million and P900 million.

Francia said the draft EO is expected to include a waiver of the $300 Customs and immigration quarantine fees and travel tax exemption for the low-cost airlines.