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A Cebu Pacific Airbus A319-111 takes off at the Clark International Airport
           June isn't exactly a good month for Cebu Pacific Air. Three incidents occured with the airline in this month alone. In result, people have criticized the airline as an "unsafe" airline.

          Despite these incidents and the criticism the airline has been receiving, CAAP Deputy Director General John Andrews said that the Gokongwei-controlled airline is "safe." 


           However, CAAP has asked  Cebu Pacific to comply with its action plan and have encouraged them to change the aircraft turnaround schedule from 30 minutes to 45 minutes.

          Andrews said that since the accident in Davao was caused by pilot error, there is no need to sanction Cebu Pacific.

          CAAP will also conduct heightened performance monitoring on the company so the company should allow unrestricted access to CAAP's flight inspectors.


           Andrews also said that the evaluation must be completed not later than July 31, 2013 and findings of any continuing systematic failure will lead to the suspension of Cebu Pacific's operations.

          In a statement, Cebu Pacific said the airline will comply with all the recommendations given by the aviation authority.


UPDATE: As posted on Cebu Pacific's Official Facebook Page

Cebu Pacific Statement Regarding CAAP Report

We received the Notice of Decision issued by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) regarding the accident involving a Cebu Pacific Airbus A320 aircraft operating Flight 5J 971 from Manila to Davao on June 2, 2013. We will comply with all the recommendations indicated within the Notice of Decision.

Safety has always been the highest priority for Cebu Pacific. We aim to provide the safest airline service possible for the millions of passengers who travel with us every year. 

Further to the CAAP’s recommendations, CEB commenced additional initiatives including:

• Enhancement of our current training curriculum to include additional focus on wet runway landings, “go-arounds,” specific training for inclement weather and non-precision approaches. 

• Implementation of enhanced pilot training curriculum by Airbus standardized trainers at the Philippine Academy for Aviation Training (PAAT), the only facility in the country that belongs to the CAE-Airbus Training cooperation, and with two state-of-the-art full flight simulators. Inaugurated in Clark in December 2012, PAAT is a joint venture with Canada-based CAE. CAE operates the world’s largest airline training network.

• An independent review of our flight operation systems and processes by Airbus Industries. Airbus will deploy a team of Safety, Flight Operations and Human Factor experts to Manila for this review.

Overseeing these initiatives is Capt. Jim Sydiongco, Cebu Pacific’s Vice President - Flight Operations. His experience in the aviation industry spans over 37 years. Capt. Sydiongco previously headed the Flight Standards Inspectorate Service (FSIS) of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP). He also served as Chief Pilot for Safety Standards and Systems at Philippine Airlines (21 years); and as the Senior Safety Supervisor of EVA Air (16 years). His expertise is invaluable to CEB’s pilot management team as he oversees all aspects of flight operations, including pilot training.

Moving forward, as we further grow and fly to new destinations using new aircraft, CEB will continue to find ways to serve our passengers better.



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