Air Transportation Office
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP, ; ) is the civil aviation authority of the
Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...
and is responsible for implementing policies on civil aviation to assure safe, economic and efficient air travel. The agency also investigates aviation accidents via its Aircraft Accident Investigation and Inquiry Board. Formerly the Air Transportation Office, it is an independent regulatory body attached to the Department of Transportation for the purpose of policy coordination.


History

Legislative Act No. 3909, passed by the
Congress of the Philippines The Congress of the Philippines () is the legislature of the national government of the Philippines. It is Bicameralism, bicameral, composed of an upper body, the Senate of the Philippines, Senate, and a lower body, the House of Representatives ...
on November 20, 1931, created an office under the Department of Commerce and Communications to handle aviation matters, particularly the enforcement of rules and regulations governing commercial aviation as well as private flying. It was amended by Act 3996 to include licensing of airmen and aircraft, inspection of aircraft concerning air traffic rules, schedules and rates and enforcement of aviation laws. From 1932 to 1936, there were no standard procedures as to the licensing of airmen, registration of aircraft and recording of various aeronautical activities connected with commercial aviation. There were attempts made to register planes and their owners without ascertaining their airworthiness and to record names of pilots, aviator mechanics and other details. In 1933, the office of Technical Assistant of Aviation matters was enlarged into the Aeronautics Division under the Department of Commerce and Industry, the functions of which were embodied in Administrative Order No. 309, a joint bulletin issued by the Department of Public Works and Communications and the Department of Finance. In October 1934, Act No. 4033 was passed to require a franchise from the Philippine government in order to operate an air service and to regulate foreign aircraft operations. On November 12, 1936, the Congress of the Philippines passed Commonwealth Act No. 168, or the Civil Aviation Law of the Philippines, which created the Bureau of Aeronautics. After the liberation of the Philippines in March 1945, the bureau was reorganized and placed under the
Department of National Defense A ministry of defence or defense (see American and British English spelling differences#-ce.2C -se, spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and Mi ...
. Among its functions was to promulgate civil aviation regulations. In October 1947, Executive Order No. 94, which reorganized the government, transferred the Bureau of Aeronautics to the newly created Department of Commerce and Industry and renamed the bureau as the Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA). On June 5, 1948, Republic Act No. 224 created the National Airports Corporation which was charged with the management and operations of all national airports. On June 20, 1952, Republic Act No. 776, otherwise known as the Civil Aeronautics Act of the Philippines, reorganized the Civil Aeronautics Board and the Civil Aeronautics Administration. It defined the powers and duties of both agencies including the funds, personnel and the regulations of civil aviation. On January 20, 1975, Letter of Instruction No. 244 transferred to the Department of Public Highways the responsibilities relative to airport plans, designs, construction, improvement, maintenance as well as site acquisition. The responsibilities related to location, planning design and funding were later returned to the CAA. On July 23, 1979, under Executive Order No. 546, the CAA was renamed the Bureau of Air Transportation (BAT) and placed under the Ministry of Transportation and Communications. On April 13, 1987, Executive Order No. 125-A renamed the Bureau of Air Transportation the Air Transportation Office headed by the assistant secretary of air transportation. On March 4, 2008, the Civil Aviation Authority Act of 2008 was signed into law, which replaced the Air Transportation Office with the Civil Aviation Authority, an independent regulatory body with
quasi-judicial A quasi-judicial body is a non-judicial body which can interpret law. It is an entity such as an arbitration panel or tribunal board, which can be a public administrative agency (not part of the judicial branch of government) but also a contra ...
and quasi-legislative powers with
corporate A corporation or body corporate is an individual or a group of people, such as an association or company, that has been authorized by the state to act as a single entity (a legal entity recognized by private and public law as "born out of s ...
attributes


Divisions

The Aircraft Accident and Inquiry Investigation Board (AAIIB), a division of the CAA, is the air accident investigation authority of the Philippines.


Controversies

On January 17, 2008, the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
Federal Aviation Administration The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is a Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government agency within the United States Department of Transportation, U.S. Department of Transportation that regulates civil aviation in t ...
(FAA) downgraded the Philippines' rating to Category 2 from Category 1, since its Air Transportation Office (Philippines; ATO) did not fully satisfy international safety standards. Consequently,
Philippine Airlines Philippine Airlines (PAL) is the flag carrier of the Philippines. Headquartered at the Philippine National Bank, PNB Financial Center in Pasay, the airline was founded in 1941 and is the oldest operating commercial airline in Asia. Philippine ...
(PAL) president Jaime Bautista stated that its 2008 growth targets would be lowered. After emerging from eight years of
receivership In law, receivership is a situation in which an institution or enterprise is held by a receiver – a person "placed in the custodial responsibility for the property of others, including tangible and intangible assets and rights" – especia ...
the previous year, PAL was prevented by the FAA decision from increasing US flights from 33 per week. President
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo Maria Gloria Macaraeg Macapagal-Arroyo (; born April 5, 1947), often referred to as PGMA or GMA, is a Filipino academic and politician who served as the 14th president of the Philippines from 2001 to 2010. She is the longest-serving president ...
dismissed acting Air Transportation Office chief Danilo Dimagiba after the downgrade and designated Department of Transportation and Communications secretary
Leandro Mendoza Leandro "Larry" Ramos Mendoza (March 17, 1946 – October 7, 2013) was a Filipino policeman and public official who served as Executive Secretary of the Philippines. He previously served as Chief of the Philippine National Police and Transpor ...
as concurrent officer in charge of ATO. In addition, the
Embassy of the United States in Manila The Embassy of the United States of America in Manila is the diplomatic mission of the United States in the Philippines. Its chancery is situated by Roxas Boulevard in Ermita, City of Manila. The Embassy has been representing the United States ...
warned US citizens in the Philippines "to refrain from using Philippine-based carriers due to 'serious concerns' about the ATO's alleged mishandling of the aviation industry." Dimagiba blamed lack of funds for the FAA downgrade, alleging that ATO needs billion ($1 = Php 40), roughly around $25,000,000. Effective April 1, 2010, the European Union, following the FAA's lead, banned Philippine carriers from flying to Europe. EU ambassador Alistair MacDonald said: 'The commission considers that the supervisory authority is currently not able to implement and enforce the relevant safety standards, and decided therefore to ban from EU airspace all air carriers licensed in the Philippines until these deficiencies are corrected.'" On June 19, 2010, important navigation equipment at the Manila airport maintained by CAAP suffered technical problems. The
VHF omnidirectional range Very High Frequency Omnidirectional Range Station (VOR) is a type of short-range VHF radio navigation system for aircraft, enabling aircraft with a VOR receiver to determine the azimuth (also radial), referenced to magnetic north, between the a ...
(VOR) used by aircraft for navigating to and from the airport stopped working due to heavy rain and there was no available replacement. One had to be brought from another airport. On April 10, 2014, the US FAA upgraded the Philippines' rating to Category 1 from Category 2. On June 25, 2015, the EU also lifted its ban on Philippine carriers flying to Europe.


See also

* List of civil aviation authorities *
List of airports in the Philippines This is a list of airports in the Philippines, grouped by type. Classification Regulation of airports and aviation in the Philippines lies with the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP). The CAAP's classification system, introduced ...


References


External links


Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines


{{DEFAULTSORT:Civil Aviation Authority Of The Philippines Organizations investigating aviation accidents and incidents Aviation organizations based in the Philippines Department of Transportation (Philippines)
Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...
2008 establishments in the Philippines Civil aviation in the Philippines Airport operators of the Philippines