Vol. XXI, No. 195 [ Business World Online ]
Tuesday, May 6, 2008 | MANILA, PHILIPPINES
PHILIPPINE AIRLINES’ (PAL) budget carrier brand took off for the first time yesterday, promising quality service at cheaper rates for hard-to-reach tourist spots in the country.
But flights from Manila to Caticlan and back were delayed, which the flag carrier blamed on the congestion at the Godofredo P. Ramos Airport in Caticlan, Aklan province. In a code-share agreement with the Lucio Tan group’s budget carrier unit Air Philippines, PAL Express started the commercial operations of its Manila-Caticlan route aiming to tap the tourist market on Boracay Island.
PAL Express was delayed for about 45 minutes from Manila to Caticlan and was late for over an hour for the return flight. PAL said the congestion at the Caticlan airport had prevented their small Bombardier aircraft to operate freely.
"One of the reasons for that was delay dispatches or late turnaround of our airplanes because of airport congestion [at Caticlan]," PAL Chief Executive Officer and President Jaime J. Bautista said in a telephone interview.
"At [the airport’s] current state, multiple aircraft cannot land and take off simultaneously," he said, adding that the expansion of the airport would be good for public safety and the profitability of airlines flying the route.
Mr. Bautista said PAL is losing potential revenues because of the decrepit airport’s runway length limitation of 950 meters. Carriers cannot use the full passenger capacity of their airplanes for safety considerations. The shorter the runway, the lighter their load must be.
The size of the parking bay must also be doubled, while the passenger terminal capacity should be tripled. The Caticlan parking bay can only accommodate four turbo propeller planes, while the passenger terminal only has an area of about 300 square meters.
PAL Express operates 12 flights daily from Manila and will expand its network in the next two months by launching 22 routes, 13 of which will operate from Cebu. — MGSR
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