Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, November 14) — A lawmaker urged the Department of Transportation (DOTr) to come up with specific targets that Philippine Airlines (PAL) must meet for it to keep its title as the ‘flag carrier’ of the country.
During the Senate plenary debate on Monday on the proposed 2024 budget of the DOTr, Senator Alan Peter Cayetano expressed dismay over the increasing complaints from passengers about PAL’s services, suggesting that certain standards should be met by the airline to retain its title or else it would be up for grabs.
“There has to be an ultimatum with them (PAL) that if they want to be a flag carrier, there’s a certain standard that they have to follow,” he said.
Cayetano said the complaints were about randomized removal of passengers due to overbooked flights, dysfunctional seats, and sudden changes in flight details.
The use of incentives and disincentives should be implemented to make the flag carrier accountable for its overbooking practice, Cayetano said.
“If the regulators or people overseeing them make sure na masakit sa kanila [that it would be painful for them] to overbook, then it will become not a matter of kindness to them but a matter of a business decision,” he added.
PAL spokesperson Cielo Villaluna on Tuesday said it is addressing the issues raised by Cayetano.
She said that the overbooking is usually due to the decision of the airline to operate or downgrade into smaller aircraft for safety reasons.
\”We are cognizant of the areas where we fall short, but we are committed to carrying out our mandate as the nation’s flag carrier,\” Villaluna told CNN Philippines.
“Despite these challenges, we have restored flights to most of our domestic, regional and international destinations,” she also said. “We look forward to route network expansion, fleet growth and service innovations. “
“We are carrying out cabin refurbishing to address seat and inflight entertainment issues and working with suppliers to resolve global supply chain issues,” she added.
The airline has placed aircraft orders to build and boost its fleet, Villaluna said, adding that it is investing in \”digital transformation\” and has already expanded its staff.
Cayetano stressed that an airline bearing the country’s name should always carry it with integrity.
“When you’re carrying the name of the Philippines, (you should be) just like Singapore (Airlines) na until the end they follow (the principle) that everything about the Singapore government is integrity,” he added, citing the airline voted as the world’s best in the 2023 World Airline Awards.
The lawmaker also said that PAL should be obligated to return the payments and provide complimentary tickets to passengers who were unable to board due to its overbooking.
The limiting of overbooking to just one or two seats would also prevent PAL from receiving lawsuits from complainants, he added.
For her part, Senator Grace Poe supported Cayetano’s frustration, adding that PAL receives privileges from bearing the country’s title as a flag carrier.
