howwwzattt... fyi...

MANILA - Research firm Frost & Sullivan recently categorized the Philippine aviation industry as a niche segment in Pilot training and aircraft maintenance in Asian Aviation.

Pilot training market in Asia Pacific became a $ 10-billion industry in 2008 with compound annual growth rate (CAGR) at 11 percent, according to Frost & Sullivan.

Subhranshu Sekhar Das, Malaysia-based Frost & Sullivan Asia Pacific director for aerospace & defense, said that "In Asia Pacific, there are requirements in pilot training and I'm not surprised if any of the investment is going to be in the Philippines, recruiting new cadets and giving them the training for PPL (private pilot license), CPL (commercial pilot license), or ATPL (airline transport pilot license) licensing."

There has been an upsurge of aviation school opening in the Philippines with foreign students from India and South Korea taking flying courses due to Western style teaching patterned after the United States and English proficient instructions.

Das reported that while there is a current slump in air travel the aviation industry as a whole has been experiencing a shortage of pilots, which drives the market for training he added during the firm's 2009 aviation summit held in Singapore earlier this month.

There are close to 700 pilots in the Philippines and demand is growing. They may have some shortage by 2013. Pilot requirement may have to grow to almost six percent CAGR.

Frost & Sullivan 2008 data showed that China has most of the pilots accounting 37% of the entire Asia Pacific aviation market, followed by India and Japan at 12% market share, while Australia, Malaysia, and South Korea each accounting for 6 percent. Thailand meanwhile has 5%, New Zealand, Indonesia and Singapore has 4% each while The Philippines and Vietnam accounted for two percent of the total number of pilots in the Asia Pacific region last year.

Also, the Aircraft maintenance business, known in the aviation industry as maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO), is also emerging as another niche for the Philippines.

In 2008, Frost & Sullivan projected the region's overall MRO business to have generated $ 22.55 billion in revenues. It forecasts revenues to reach $ 66.58 billion by 2030, with the commercial fixed wing segment accounting for 54 percent of MRO business from 45 percent last year. By 2030, the global consultancy firm expects diminished markets for the military rotary and fixed wing segments, as well as for civil rotary wing.

Good MRO Performance:

Among the US Federal Aviation Administration(FAA) -certified repair stations in the country are FFC Services Asia-Pacific Operations and Honeywell Ceasa Subic Bay Co. Inc., both located at the Subic Bay Freeport Zone; International Aviation Service Assistance at the Clark Special Economic Zone (CSEZ); Moog Controls Corp. at the Baguio ecozone; Lufthansa Technik Philippines (LTP) headquartered at the MacroAsia Special Economic Zone of Villamor Airbase, with operations in Cebu, Clark and Davao; as well as Nordisk Aviation Services Phils. Corp. located in Parañaque City.

The 2008 performance of LTP, a joint venture between MacroAsia Corp. and Lufthansa AG initially formed to service the fleet of Philippine Airlines (PAL), boosts the positive outlook on MRO business in the Philippines. In its 2008 annual report presented in March 12, Lufthansa Technik Group announced LTP revenues for the year at 160 million euros (equivalent to P10.6 billion).

Aviation Week, an industry magazine, noted in its report on the financial results that LTP was among the strongest revenue earners in the global network of the Lufthansa Technik Group last year, next only to its sister plant, Ameco Beijing, the latter's joint venture with Air China, and N3 Engine Overhaul Services, the joint venture with Rolls Royce Plc.

LTP is currently providing MRO services from its facility in NAIA to PAL, Lufthansa Airlines, Singapore Airlines, Cathay Pacific Airways and other international airlines that fly to Manila. It also provides technical ground handling services to Air Niugini, China Airlines, Egypt Air, Eva Air, KLM Royal Dutch, Korean Air, Malaysia Airlines, Silk Air and Cathay Pacific Airways.

The Regional Race for MRO Hub:

There is a race between Singapore and Malaysia to become the regional MRO hub. Currently, Singapore corners 90 percent of the region's MRO business, but Malaysia and the Philippines is catching up and may eat up Singapore's share in the future.

Currently, work is underway for the 300-hectare Seletar Aerospace Park in Singapore, which it touts to be a world-class industrial park for a wide range of aerospace activities, including MRO, OEM and training for pilots, aviation professionals and technical personnel. It is expected to be completed by 2018.

Meanwhile, Malaysia plans to transform itself into a global aerospace player by 2015 through its Malaysia International Aerospace Center being developed at the former Subang Airport.

Here in the Philippines, a 2,715-hectare Civil Aviation Complex is being developed at the Clark-Subic Economic Zone (CSEZ). The Clark International Airport Corp. announced last year two major locators at the Civil Aviation Complex. These were Kuwait Gulf and Link, which plans to build 125-hectare logistics park, and Singapore Airlines Engineering Co. (SIAEC), a joint venture between Singapore Airlines and Cebu Pacific ,which will locate a 10-hectare MRO facility at the DMIA that will complement existing operations at Singapore's Changi Airport.

"It's all about the country strength and weaknesses and how they are going to position the country to create that environment. There are opportunities in the Philippines. It all depends on how the government is going to attract the investors to set up the industries," Das said.

Since Asia Pacific region can never be an Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM), it can be a big OEM integrators [that] could also tap the Philippines for Tier 1 or Tier 2 components or parts manufacturing. Manufacturing industries are definitely China and India. Singapore and Malaysia can drive the research and development in other high-tech jobs. The Philippines can probably continue MRO industries, pilot training schools or maybe create the general aviation potential for the other countries.

Other opportunities would also be presented by the massive airport development in China and India until 2020, which could generate design and build projects for Philippine contractors.

But Das noted the country's strongest suit remains with service-oriented segments of the aviation industry due to its skilled workforce and their English language proficiency.

Taken from Malaysia Airlines E&M Portal.

howwwzattt... a ballad of a troubled mind... part. III

When there’s no sunshine, the moon will no longer beaming nor shines... – Anonymous

FATHER AND SON:
Songwriter: Yusuf Islam aka Cat Stevens

It's not time to make a change,
Just relax, take it easy.
You're still young, that's your fault,
There's so much you have to know.
Find a girl, settle down,
If you want you can marry.
Look at me, I am old, but I'm happy.

I was once like you are now, and I know that it's not easy,
To be calm when you've found something going on.
But take your time, think a lot,
Why, think of everything you've got.
For you will still be here tomorrow, but your dreams may not.

How can I try to explain, when I do he turns away again.
It's always been the same, same old story.
From the moment I could talk I was ordered to listen.
Now there's a way and I know that I have to go away.
I know I have to go.

It's not time to make a change,
Just sit down, take it slowly.
You're still young, that's your fault,
There's so much you have to go through.
Find a girl, settle down,
if you want you can marry.
Look at me, I am old, but I'm happy.

All the times that I cried, keeping all the things I knew inside,
It's hard, but it's harder to ignore it.
If they were right, I'd agree, but it's them you know not me.
Now there's a way and I know that I have to go away.
I know I have to go...

howwwzattt... a ballad of a troubled mind part. II...

Again, he can’t sleep. 5 years ago he got the same problem, for more than 6 months he suffered sleepless nights. It affected him so much, depressed and feeling lonely at times when everybody else enjoying their beautiful slumbers.

He turned himself to what he thinks he knows best. Intoxicate himself just for that one sleep that he needs.

He wondered if the same problem still inside him, lurking beneath the many layers of emotion and feeling that he kept away from the world.

Someone did mention to him to start writing again. Write just about anything she said, just to keep your sanity at bay. For she knows that he will writes when something is troubling him, when he is down. He was troubled then and he is now.

He is doing it now; he felt the depression mounting on him. He’s been living in lies. For 15 years he lied to the world, for 15 years he lied to those that dear to him. He resented himself for that and prays silently for them to understand him. He had failed them.

Certain thought did cross his mind. Someday on a very fine morning he would just lay everything down and leave everything behind with a haversack fill with his personal belonging and a few fresh clothes, just leave and roam the world and be his own Revolving Jones...

howwwzattt... my piece, my memory lane being educated as Anak Malaysia...

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 29 — Perkasa chief Datuk Ibrahim Ali has joined calls for strong action to be taken against Teo Nie Ching for entering a surau in her constituency last week, saying the Serdang MP must be charged for ‘desecrating’ the Surau Al-Huda. (more here)

This is what was reported in the MalaysianInsider today and I believe major daily publication carried on the same thing for these few days.

I remember when I was in form 1 or form 2 (85/86), our school hockey team had travelled down to Ipoh for a match with one of the team there. Those days it was an affair that everyone would look forward to since the trip could be disguised itself into everything from having cendol to smuggling contrabands into the school and the fact that our coach (cikgu Abdul Rahim Udin aka ARU) was the most feared individual in the school didn’t make a difference for us at all.

Come to think of it, the reason I left hockey for cricket was because of him.

The match was held at Ipoh Padang where as usual we won the match. While waiting for our bus to pick us up back to Taiping all of us took our rest and shower at the Masjid India across the Ipoh Padang besides the St. Michael Institution. Some went to pray and some just cool themselves under the tree shade outside the mosque.

Suddenly there was this heavy downpour and all of us scampered inside the mosque for shelter accept for this one Indian boy a star player himself, Shankar Ramu (ex-national player) who didn’t know what to do and where to seek his refuge from the heavy rain.

Our most feared coach, yes cikgu Rahim just went up to him and told him to come inside the mosque while handing him a sarung to cover his lower limb. Shankar did hesitate whether it is alright for him a non-Muslim to enter the mosque. I can’t remember what did our coach told him but after that Shankar was among us inside the mosque wearing his sarung of course. Of course who do know Shankar Ramu could verify this with him.

I like to think myself of having a liberal view on our very own politics and some did say I was having a liberal standing on Islam itself. I don’t know how they saw me with the latter one.

Today NST page 4, column 3, paragraph 7:

PAS VP Salahuddin Ayub said the National Fatwa Council which had met for the 90th time on Mac 1 this year, had decided that non-Muslims and non-Muslims tourist were allowed to enter mosque or surau. It was a decree.

Since the time I had remember, thousands and thousands of non-Muslims and non-Muslims tourist had gone inside the Masjid Negara for “lawatan” provided they cover their “aurat”. The Masjid Negara authority had even provides “jubah” at the main entrance for the purpose.

Remember earlier this year when our DPM went to this Sikh temple? He was praised and hailed with many good things no? Political? Of course it was no matter to those from BN, PKR or PAS.

But what did failed me was, when it is come to others apart those from the reigning federal administration, it was blown ridiculously out of proportions as if it was a big sin, bigger than the first Rukun Islam itself.

howwwzattt... a ballad of a troubled mind...

“If you want to be recognized, you stand. If you want to be respected, you speak but if you don’t want to make fools of yourselves, just remain seated...” (improvised it to suit the language)

This is what I’ve learnt, those wise words from someone that I didn’t know but will keep on sticking forever in my mind. Just like the 5F=9C+160, the unofficial temperature conversion formula that was taught to me during my schooldays.

Long ago there was this young man who was so helpless in determining what he is going to do and going to be when he all grown up as a man. His mind and his soul were so twisted in determining what is right and what is wrong.

He turned himself to be a delinquent, a truant just to justify his course of action to the world and never once he thought that someday he shall regret his misdeed to himself.

Once his discipline master said to him that in future if he still remains as he was then, he shall face failure heads on in life but he never took it seriously and yet deep inside him he knows, they were right. The world was right.

He took many wrong turns, been to where he shouldn’t be, roam carelessly and aimlessly. For him, life is just for that moment, so why must spoil it with something tedious such as good education, anyway everyone is going to die someday he thinks.

Yes, he was blessed with the chance to be schooled in one of the best school at that time and somehow he blew the opportunity big time just with one shortcoming in his being.

That little tiny faceless thing was called love.

As an adult now, that once a young rebellious young man took all those failures in a good stride and accepted it as lessons he learnt along the way to become the man he is now.

He had learnt the hard way but he never regret those lessons he learnt for he knows, he is brave enough to smile at the world for what he is now, calloused and hardened with failures, he embraced it with his own kind of love.

Only with failures he should learn to become a better man...


p.s: Dedicated to those paths that crosses...