Business as usual at NAIA despite FAA downgrade

Thousands of tourists and businessmen are arriving at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) despite the country’s downgrading from category 1 to category 2 by the US Federal Aviation Administration.

General Manager Alfonso Cusi of the Manila International Airport Authority assured the public that NAIA is safe.

“The Ninoy Aquino International Airport is compliant with the standards prescribed by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO),” he said.

“There is no cause for alarm because the NAIA remains capable of efficiently and safely servicing local and international carriers.”

Cusi advised travelers, especially tourists to continue their travel plans to the Philippines as the NAIA observes “business as usual” and maintains all amenities and courtesies due to airline passengers.

“Like all other international airports worldwide, the Ninoy Aquino International Airport undergoes periodic assessment by the ICAO and the US Transportation Security Administration (TSA), and it has passed all tests for security and efficiency,” he said.

Cusi said Tourism Secretary Joseph Ace Durano has urged the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) and the Air Transportation Office (ATO) to work for the country’s return to category 1.

The United States is next only to South Korea as the Philippines’ leading source of tourists, Cusi said.

Meanwhile, Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel Jr. said yesterday the US government was sending a “deeper message” when the FAA downgraded the country to category 2.

“More than meets the eye, the United States is actually telling President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo a non-too-subtle message that her days as president are numbered,” he said.

“Like Efren ‘Bata’ Reyes in a game of billiards, the US is aiming at a ball but actually wants to get another one into the billiard table pocket.”

Pimentel said the US wants Mrs. Arroyo to follow its lead in foreign policy initiatives, including a more aggressive stance against terrorism.

The US might also want to sell us advanced technology in aviation or other fields, he added.

Pimentel said he feels sorry for Assistant Secretary Danilo Dimagiba who was sacked as officer-in-charge of ATO, a virtual scapegoat for the downgrading.

“Dimagiba is not responsible for the downgrade of our aviation safety,” he said. “If we talk about security requirements, these are already among the most stringent in the world.”

Overtime pay of ATO air traffic controllers has not been paid for more than a year now because funds are being withheld at the DOTC, Pimentel said, quoting reports.

Dimagiba served as ATO OIC for only three months after replacing Nilo Jatico, who was sacked by Malacañang for alleged misuse of agency funds. – With Christina Mendez