The Asian Business Aviation Association (AsBAA), organizer of the first Philippines Aviation Safety Day—held November 13 and 14 in Manila—reported a successful show that covered topics from promoting safety standards in the business aviation community to the introduction to the Philippines Air Force (PAF) search and rescue operations.

It was attended by a number of high-level industry and government participants that included Senator Grace Poe, Department of Transportation undersecretary Manuel Tamayo, and Deputy Director General of the Civil Aviation Authority of Philippines (CAAP), Capt. Donald Mendoza. The latter also announced the plan to study and introduce a regulation tailored for general and business aviation.

“At the recent Inaugural AsBAA Philippines Safety Day and Pilots’ Days in Manila, AsBAA was enormously encouraged to see the level of commitment, engagement, and leadership from the authorities. There is a defined roadmap toward creating enhanced aviation infrastructure that will lead to further economic growth and jobs for the local community,” said AsBAA vice chairman Phil Balmer.

“Crucially, there is also clear vision on the part of the authorities to work with associations such as AsBAA to ensure business and general aviation is part of these plans,” he added.