Pilots given 7-day ultimatum as PAL rushes to fix schedules

(Updated 8:10 p.m.) Pilots who left flag carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) without giving the company ample time to train their replacements have been ordered to return to work within seven days or face civil, criminal and administrative charges. In a statement issued Sunday, PAL said the mass resignation of the pilots, which had caused a number of canceled flights, were illegal and in violation of their existing contracts. “PAL doesn’t want to get in the way of its pilots’ dream of landing better paying jobs abroad, but they have contractual obligations with the company and a moral responsibility to thousands of passengers," the Lucio Tan-owned airline said. It said the pilots left the company without prior notice. “Many of them simply did not show up for work and just handed in their resignation letters. Some of them even owe PAL millions of pesos for the cost of their training," PAL said. No less than President Benigno Aquino III has said these pilots could be charged for allegedly breaching their contracts. “There has been disruption to our tourism efforts and to other aspects of the economy.... If this [pilots' not reporting for duty] is not warranted, they lay themselves open with appropriate charges," Aquino said at a press briefing Sunday.
"Mission Critical Skills" Considered “Mission Critical Skills," pilots and aircraft mechanics are required by government regulations to give their local employers at least 180 days or six months to find suitable replacements before taking another job abroad. Eight domestic flights were canceled Sunday due to lack of pilots, while at least 11 were canceled the previous day because of the same reason. PAL said all schedules will return to normal within the week. PAL sought public understanding as it adjusts flight schedules and merges some flights. The eight canceled flights on Sunday included Manila-Cagayan-Manila (PR181/182), Manila-Bacolod-Manila (PR133/134), Manila-Iloilo-Manila (PR147/148), and Manila-Cebu-Manila (PR847/848). A Manila-Iloilo-Manila flight (PR145/146) that usually departs Manila at 4:20 p.m. was rescheduled to 6:30 p.m. All apologies PAL apologized to the affected passengers and said it has already intensified the training of more pilots to fill the gap. “We apologize to our loyal patrons for the inconvenience. We know our passengers missed connecting flights, including important personal and business appointments. But the pilots’ resignation is something we couldn't prevent," it said. PAL said it is now having dialogues with government agencies such as the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration and the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines to avoid the loss of more pilots to what it described as “poachers" abroad. It admitted that the pilots’ salary, although “high" by local standards, is “still no match" to the offer of foreign countries. “Our problem is, our competitors abroad seem to prefer PAL pilots because they were highly-trained by PAL and renowned for their flying skills," the airline added. Unavailable flights? Meanwhile, at least six PAL flights between Manila and three major cities may remain unavailable on Monday, two days after PAL's pilots suddenly failed to show up for work. Visitors booking a flight from Manila to Iloilo, Cagayan de Oro and Bacolod via PAL's website late Sunday got error messages showing there will be no flights available there on Monday. "There are no flights available for your preferred date(s). Please choose other dates to continue," the message read when visitors sought to book flights for the two destinations. PAL's website also showed there are no flights from Bacolod and Cagayan de Oro to Manila on Monday. On the other hand, PAL's website indicated there will be flights between Manila and Cebu on Monday. While PAL's website initially indicated a flight from Iloilo to Manila (PR-146), which leaves Iloilo at 6:05 p.m., the page contained an error message indicating no flight from Iloilo to Manila on Monday as of 7:50 p.m. – KBK, GMANews.TV