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The Impact of COVID-19 on Philippine Air Traffic Management
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IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON PHILIPPINE AIR TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT
zby Renz Marione Bulseco, Air Traffic Controller, Davao Approach Control (RPMD)
The Air Traffic Service of the Civil Aviation Authority of
spread of COVID-19. International flights hours straight, and the remaining days to key cities in the country had followed of the week will be either a day off or a as well. While the government has ad- work-from-home setup to meet the revised everyone to stay at home, it was an quired 40-hour workweek. ATCs on duty the Philippines (CAAP) entirely different story for air traffic con- are required to wear face masks and to officially inaugurated the Philippine Air trollers, albeit with the new safety proce- observe social distancing and frequent Traffic Management Center (ATMC) in dures and health protocols mandated by hand washing to minimize the spread of August 2019. The new ATMC is part of the Department of Health. the virus. an effort to integrate systems of the approach control and en route facilities of When all domestic flights and most in- Since there is a surplus of air traffic conthe country. The new integrated system ternational flights were halted, air traffic trollers, CAAP has announced that it will addresses the increasing demand for air volumes were reduced by more than suspend the recruitment of new air traffic travel in the country. 90%. Due to the low volume of air traffic controllers. We are currently in a situation across the country, the Air Traffic Service where we encounter a surplus of air trafOn 12 March 2020, Philippine President of CAAP reformulated the new working fic controllers to cope with the limited Rodrigo Duterte halted domestic land, schedule to ensure that there would be demand, and it is still unclear how the sea, and air travel to and from Manila be- fewer ATCs reporting for duty on a giv- demand for air travel will recover. Aviaginning on 15 March 2020. The national en day. Pre-COVID, air traffic controllers tion experts estimate that it could take at capital region of the Philippines and the in the Philippines worked 40 hrs a week least 12-18 months before we get back to greater Manila area were under an exten- with two days off. During the pandem- at least 80% of the peaks we saw in 2019. sive community quarantine to curb the ic, we have been required to work 24 Therefore, there could be less demand for air traffic controllers in the country for a few years to come. The COVID-19 pandemic is 'The Big One' that we never anticipated. It caught us off guard. Nevertheless, the Air Traffic Service has crafted new procedures to handle situations like this global pandemic. These procedures ensure the safety of our aircraft as we mitigate the spread of COVID-19. The air traffic service has never ceased to provide air traffic service to help flights safely carry stranded locals and Overseas Filipinos (OFWs) and essential goods. y
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