THE PHILIPPINES’ Department of Transportation & Communication (DOTC) has scrapped its plan requiring local carriers to scale down domestic operations at Manila’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) by 30 per cent.
Originally scheduled to begin this month, the flight reduction was one of several measures to be implemented to alleviate congestion at NAIA (TTG Asia e-Daily, May 16, 2012).
A check by TTG Asia e-Daily of the flight schedules belonging to Cebu Pacific, Philippine Airlines and Air Philippines revealed that the three carriers had not complied with the DOTC initiative.
According to Maria Victoria Jasmin, acting undersecretary, Tourism Services and Regional Operations, Philippines’ Department of Tourism, scaling back domestic operations at NAIA now seems less of a viable solution since “there are a lot of things to consider, including cargoes…and the destinations to be affected”.
Had the initiative pushed through, it would have affected both local and foreign traffic to popular leisure destinations such as Boracay, Palawan, Cebu, Bohol and Davao, said Ine Faustino, general manager of CCT 168 Travel & Tours.
Meanwhile, Jasmin said DOTC would persist in its consultation process with airlines and government agencies to solve the congestion problems at NAIA.
