The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) and the Manila International Airport Authority (Miaa), has extended the deferred collection of various fees and charges from its airport concessionaires.
In an online news briefing, with Department of Transportation (DOTr) officials, CAAP Director General Jim C. Sydiongco announced the fees and charges include lease or rental.
The “rental holiday” has been extended until May 25, 2020, following the extension of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) period in Metro Manila and other “high risk” areas in the country until May 15. A rental holiday was initially granted from March 15 to April 30, 2020.
Sydiongco said they may extend further the rental holiday period “as the situation progresses.”
“At present, the threat of Covid-19 [coronavirus disease 2019] remains and continues to increase that’s why we have to act and help the airline industry recover,” he added.
Sydiongco said a one-year deferment—applied on March 12, 2020—of the collection of landing and take-off fees as well as parking fees for domestic and international flights has been implemented in all CAAP-operated airports.
He added that the collection of aeronautical fees of local air carriers by the Manila International Airport Authority has also been deferred for one year and will be reflected in their March 1, 2020, billing.
Rental charges of all concessionaires operating at the terminals, including check-in counter charges, are waived for two months effective March 15, 2020, or until the scheduled end of the ECQ.
Miaa General Manager Eddie V. Monreal said the government-owned and -operated corporation also waived interest charges for late settlement of account that fall due within the ECQ period.
“Miaa is also not imposing interest on the deferred collection of May 2020 rental,” Monreal said. “The [Miaa] Board has approved these agreements to unload the burden that the airline industry experiences during this time, especially [since] the recovery is seen to build up slowly even after the Covid-19 situation subsides.”
The airline industry is one of the sectors hit hardest when states established measures to address the pandemic.
Apart from the deferment of several airline charges and fees amid the Covid-19 crisis, Sydiongco said new airport measures are also being implemented to prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease.
These measures include the provision of sanitation items and foot baths in every entry and exit points and observance of routine disinfection for surfaces and equipment frequently exposed. The latter includes screening equipment and trays at the security checkpoint and baggage areas.
Inbound flights suspended
The use of all international airports for international inbound passenger flights in the country effective May 3 was also temporarily suspended by the DOTr. The suspension exempts en route emergencies.
The DOTr said in a statement issued on Sunday the measure would allow the current system to ramp up its capacity to properly process the growing number of Filipino repatriates going back to the Philippines daily.
According to the statement, the government has already accommodated around 20,000 repatriates who are quarantined in Metro Manila, with an arrival rate of 2,000 per day.
“This measure to temporarily suspend international passenger arrivals will enable the government to decongest the processing of this number to a more manageable level, given the need to observe strict health protocols, and the fact that existing quarantine facilities are at full capacity,” the statement read.
The DOTr said the move is deemed necessary to ensure the Philippines “will not experience a second wave of Covid-19 pandemic due to the increasing number of international passenger arrivals.”
“It should be noted that most of our repatriated citizens are coming from countries [that] experienced significant Covid-19 outbreak,” the DOTr said.
“It will also allow the government’s frontline agencies that are tasked to contain the spread of Covid-19 to upgrade their testing and screening protocols, and expand the existing quarantine and treatment facilities and ensure a more comfortable quarantine arrangement for repatriated” Filipinos, the statement read.