CAAP looking for Flight Check Aircraft,
the final piece of the puzzle
November 11, 2012
by Recto Mercene
THE Civil Aviation
Authority of the Philippines (Caap) is offering P40 million for a
one-year contract to a company, which can provide a flight-check
aircraft to calibrate some 118 navigational aids (Navaids) throughout
the archipelago.
A flight-check
aircraft is specially designed to calibrate Navaids every six months to
ensure they are beaming the correct signals for safe navigation.
Like any electronic
equipment, Navaids are subject to the vagaries of weather and constant
use—being on the air 24/7—and they get misaligned or deviate from their
setting, according to Alger Ramo, a senior airport ramp controller.
The Caap hire or rent
foreign flight-check aircraft to calibrate a few Navaids costing P3
million to P5 million when its flight-check airplane is under
maintenance. It recently rented from a New Zealand company for a week.
Because of the high
expense, the Caap bought its own flight check aircraft, a twin-engine
Beechcraft “King Air.” However, it has been out of commission for years
after its two engines required overhauling, the Caap said.
The engines were
eventually repaired in India at a cost of P43 million, but problems
still exist before they could be made operational.
Improperly aligned
signals by a Navaid could lead to an aircraft going astray from air
routes, which could spell disaster if not corrected on time, Ramo said.
Airplanes could also fail to be properly alignment in the runway if the signals are incorrect.
Clark, Subic and the Mactan-Cebu International Airports maintain their own Navaids. They are also designated alternate airports.
Ramo, a former pilot,
said modern airplanes have redundant devices, such as Global Positioning
System, relying on satellite signals to show the airplane’s location.
The efficient operation of all the Navaids is a requirement of the International Civil Aviation Organization, Ramo added.
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