MANILA, Philippines — It has been almost five years since the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), downgraded Philippine aviation from Category 1 to Category 2 due to numerous safety issues that are not in accordance with the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).

The government responded by abolishing the Air Transportation Office (ATO) and replacing it with the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP).

 In response to the critical findings by the FAA, the CAAP overhauled the previous system by replacing those in key technical posts with highly qualified personnel, installing the latest electronic technology, and streamlining its records, among others.

Now, the CAAP feels that the country has a better-quality aviation body and invited the FAA to review its accomplishments. The Authority hopes that a positive appraisal will move the FAA to get us back to Category 1 status.

Last Monday, a team from the United States started its Technical Review of CAAP, which would last until January 27.

The review is aimed at determining the preparedness of the Philippine civil aviation oversight office for the full FAA Audit prior to its issuance of rating for the Philippines.

The team is headed by Jacques Astre, he and the other members who are all aviation experts. They will conduct simultaneous consultations and meetings with their local counterparts to assess the CAAP’s readiness for another round of audits and evaluations to regain Category 1. The team will also determine if the aviation body has complied with numerous “Significant Safety Concerns” listed by the ICAO and lift the ban imposed by the European Union on Philippine air operators.

The other members of the team are: Beverly Sharkey, lawyer; Craig Michael, operations; Andre Lamarre, airworthiness; and Julianna Kim, State Department International Transportation Officer, as observer.

Last Jan. 23, the CAAP briefed the team on the progress of the renovation to address the critical issues found during the last review six months ago.

Among the major developments in the CAAP as an offshoot of the downgrading to Category 2 are the use of the computer software dubbed Civil Aviation Safety Oversight Reporting & Tracking Suite (CASORT) and the Electronic Inspector Toolkit.

CASORT is a computer program that accesses personnel files, reports on certificate, license, and authorization issuances, among others. The Electronic Inspector Toolkit is an intranet system for keeping digital reference documents of inspectors and technical staff.

During the FAA Audit in 2007, the Philippines was downgraded to Category 2 upon the discovery of eight critical elements of safety oversight system.

These are the following:

Primary Aviation Legislation – Refers to the legislative agenda of the government to implement the provisions of the Convention on International Civil Aviation and its Annexes.

Specific Operating Regulations – Deals into the availability of amended and up-to-date copies of national aviation regulations for inspectors and users.

CAA Structure & Safety Oversight Function;  pertains to the creation of RA 9497, which abolished the ATO and created the CAAP.

Technical Guidance – The new standard for training inspectors and technical personnel.

Qualified Personnel – With the use of an intranet system, a digital reference of documents on inspectors and technical personnel’s merit and qualifications can be easily accessed.

Licensing & Certification Obligations – A clear regulatory basis and technical guidance reference for certification and issuance of air operator certificate and operating authorizations.

Continued Surveillance Obligations – A system of supervision to ensure execution of specific guidance on the conduct of follow-up inspections, both random and planned.

Resolution of Safety Issues – In instances when a deficiency is found during inspection, the safety oversight office should have specific procedures to be implemented to correct the deficiency within a specified time.

The result of the technical review is expected in a month’s time, after which, the FAA Audit will schedule when to issue a final category rating for the CAAP.