Philippines a Laggard of Tourism and Aviation in Southeast Asia Essay Example

Philippines: a Laggard of Tourism and Aviation in Southeast Asia? Essay The Philippines has been known as a hub of Southeast Asia up until the mid-1960s. With Philippine Airlines as the country’s major flag carrier, many countries and airlines wanted to be like the Philippines. Unfortunately, some events led to the downfall of the tourism and aviation of the country thus leading to the country’s current situation: a laggard in tourism and aviation. Before the start of this paper, definition of terms would be provided for hub, laggard, tourism and aviation. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration defines hub as an airlines base of operations. An airlines hub is at an airport that houses a large number of its aircraft each night and is the origin of a large number of the airlines connecting flights. (National Aeronautics and Space Administration, 2011) The Chartered Institute of Marketing defines laggard as those who are last to adopt a new product or service. (The Chartered Institute of Marketing, 2011) The United Nations World Tourism Organization defines tourism as the activities of people travelling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes not related to the exercise of an activity remunerated from within the place visited. (United Nations World Tourism Organization, 2011) NASA also defines aviation as the operation of heavier-than-air aircraft also considered to be the design, development and manufacture of aircraft. There are three types of aviation: general, commercial and military. National Aeronautics and Space Administration, 2011) The Philippine Airlines, known before as Philippine Airways, Inc. , started its operation on February 26, 1941 with a starting capital of Php 500,000. It was established through the joint efforts of Juan M. Elizalde, Andres Soriano, Former Senator Ramon Fernandez, Schultz and Ernestto von Kauffmann. The airlines competed with Iloiloi-Negros Air Express Co. , Inc. (INAEC) with its Beech Model 18 NPC-54 from Manila to Baguio and from Baguio to Manila. Through the help of the government, PAL increased its capital to Php 1,000,000. We will write a custom essay sample on Philippines: a Laggard of Tourism and Aviation in Southeast Asia? specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Philippines: a Laggard of Tourism and Aviation in Southeast Asia? specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Philippines: a Laggard of Tourism and Aviation in Southeast Asia? specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Alongside with that, the government became the largest stockholder of the company with thirty-four (34) percent of shares. By July 31, 1946, PAL became the first Asian airline which operated across the Pacific through the use of a Douglas DC-4 from Trans-Ocean Airline to fly between Manila and Oakland that took 41 hours to complete. After that milestone, continuous increases in the capital of the company have occurred. PAL bought more aircrafts and more destinations like Europe have been added to their list of services. PAL became the first Asian airline to operate to Europe and so more and more airlines in the Southeast Asian region look up to PAL. But amidst all of the achievements made by PAL, the country still lagged behind other Asian countries. Foreign countries like the US and Germany establish airlines in other Asian countries which offer better services compared to PAL. PAL, being the first Asian airline and got nothing to base its ideas from, hired its own staff, cabin attendants, service personnel, maintenance staff and other needed people to make the airline operate as smooth as possible. Many of the money that should be used to make their services and aircrafts better went to the training of their staff and to their salaries. From that, foreign airlines learned how to utilize their resources. They opted to outsource some of their employees therefore using less amount of money for training and such. A couple of problems have shaken the state of PAL and the country and tested its strength. Things like the suspension of PAL’s international operations due to economic issues, the continuous accidents involving the aircrafts of PAL in a single year, the Martial Law, the assassination of Benigno â€Å"Ninoy† Aquino, Jr. the numerous coup d’etats during the term of former President Corazon Aquino, competitions with other emerging airlines, a number of strikes among PAL employees and others have affected the services of PAL and the tourism state of the country. Foreigners became scared, if not more careful, about going to the country. With the politics-re lated issues that occurred in the country, more and more people tend to visit other countries which are in the Southeast Asian region as well. The economy seemed to be a problem as well. Problems like the Asian Financial Crisis and the weakening of the Peso compared to the Dollar affected the tourist arrivals in the country. Another thing that could be a factor as to which the Philippines remains to be a laggard in aviation is due to the fact that there are too many airlines in the country that instead of helping each other to make the country’s aviation better, chose to compete with each other. In addition to that, the continuous privatization and nationalization of PAL affected its operations and reputation due to the changes in the management and such. Since PAL couldn’t fire their other staffs, like the flight attendants, it could be concluded that somehow, that affects the â€Å"reputation† of PAL. Most, if not all, airlines commonly use younger flight attendants. If it would be compared to the older flight attendant of PAL which are assigned at the business class section of several flights, other airlines would really have more edge on this aspect. As for the tourism side of the issue, the country is truly blessed with abundant resources that could be considered as tourism assets. Tourism became an asset for the country. As a matter of fact, many Southeast Asian countries envy the country due to its assets and its economy. â€Å"Economically, the Philippines was the envy of other South East Asian countries. From 1950 until 1960, the average growth of the GDP was 6. 5 percent. In contrast, Thailand, Indonesia, and Malaysia only grew by 5. 6 percent, 4. 0 percent, and 3. 6 percent respectively. The following decade, the country still expanded at an average of 5. 1 percent. While decent, other countries began to catch up but we still held on to our lead. † (Philippine Online Chronicles, 2011) Unfortunately, events like the Martial Law and the rising international debts of the Philippines led to the slow downfall of the country. Up until now, the country couldn’t cope up with the challenges from the past. Numerous administrations have passed by but it could be seen that â€Å"every time the country would accelerate towards progress, it hits a brick wall†. (Philippine Online Chronicles, 2011) Quoting the words of DOT Secretary Jimenez, Somewhere in Thailand and Vietnam and Malaysia some people are very worried about what were about to do. They know we havent got the budget, can you figure out why (theyd be worried)? The answer can only be, the Filipinos have always beaten them with less. Always.   (ABS-CBN News, 2011) Among the factors that could be considered as to which the Philippines became a laggard in tourism are the low quality and number of airports, roads and other infrastructure. Infrastructures that are fully developed are often found in the urban areas of the country. Unfortunately, most of the â€Å"hidden† tourist destinations are found in the rural areas of the country and the roads that tourist should undergo are not that good. Most of the world-class tourism destinations of the country are located outside Metro Manila. We need to facilitate the travel of tourists from their point of origin to the final tourism destinations and thus there is a need to improve the tourist facilities in the major airports of Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao, Cerilles said. (House of Representatives, 2011) To start these improvements, the government must see to it that the airports of the country are fully equipped and must be presentable to the tourists since the airports are the gateways to the country. A not good looking airport could make tourists stop visiting the country because these airports give the tourists a bad first impression for the country. As of the moment, there are no Philippine carriers which have a direct to the Middle East and Europe and if ever that PAL could restore its services there or if other airlines in the country would try to take a risk at servicing in those areas, it could be a big help for the country. Promotion is also a big help for the country. If the government and the citizens of the country would help each other in promoting the different tourist attractions in the country, chances would be that the tourist arrivals in the country would increase. As other people may say, word of mouth is a good tool in promoting. A good slogan or tagline for the country would help the country as well. It must show what the country could offer to the tourists not just from other countries, but tourists that live in the Philippines as well. To sum everything up, the country has lots of potentials to grow and to become more successful in both aviation and tourism. It’s just a matter of proper allocation of attention and support not just from the government but from the citizens of the country as well. If the public and the private sector would work together, then the country could go a very long way. People must set aside their own motives and help in making the country more popular especially tourism wise since tourism could generate a lot of jobs thus satisfying the need of the public sector as well as the private sector. The country is blessed with numerous assets. It’s not just the natural resources but the people living in here as well could be considered as assets so Filipinos should stand up and make a move in bringing the Philippines back to the top. Bibliography: CIM Definition of Laggard. The Chartered Institute of Marketing Website. http://www. cim. co. uk/resources/glossary/home. aspx, 09 September 2011. From Leader to Laggard: Effects of Martial Law on PHL Economy. Philippine Online Chronicles Website. http://www. thepoc. net/thepoc-features/mukhang-pera/mukhang- pera-features/11258-from-leader-to-laggard. html, 25 September 2011. Greater Liberalization of RP Commercial Aviation Eyed. House of Representatives Website. http://www. congress. gov. ph/press/details. php? pressid=2585, 25 September 2011. Milestones in the History of PAL. ttp://www. philippineairlines. com/about_pal/milestones/ milestones. jsp, 20 September 2011. NASA Definition of Aviation. National Aeronautics and Space Administration Website. http://quest. arc. nasa. gov/aero/virtual/demo/glossary/A. html, 09 September 2011. NASA Definition of Hub. National Aeronautics and Space Administration Website. http://quest. arc. nasa. gov/aero/virtual/demo/glossary/H. html, 09 Septe mber 2011. Philippine Airlines Info Kit: 1981. (1981). Manila: Philippine Airlines. Philippines to Launch Upbeat Tourism Campaign. Intellasia Interactive Website. ttp://www. intelasia. net/news/articles/philippines/111339289_printer. shtml, 25 September 2011. Santos, E. B. (1981). Trails in Philippine Skies: A History of Aviation in the Philippines from 1909 to 1941. Manila: Philippine Airlines. WTO Definition of Tourism. Link BC Website. http://www. linkbc. ca/torc/downs1/WTOdefinitio ntourism. pdf, 09 September 2011. Zapanta, A. L. (2005). 100 Years of Philippine Aviation 1909-2009: A Focus on Airline Management. Taytay, Rizal: ALZ Publishing. Rachelle Eunice D. Belaro 2009-29481 T168 WFY Dr. Avelino DL Zapanta