Converge’s Dennis Uy seeks takeover of PH’s air traffic system

Pampanga-based internet tycoon Dennis Anthony Uy, founder and CEO of Converge ICT Solutions Inc., has set his sights on the Philippines’ air traffic management system.

In a chance interview with reporters at Cebu Pacific’s Gala last week, Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista said that Uy’s ComClark Network and Technology Corp. (ComClark) has submitted an unsolicited proposal, through the Private Public Partnership (PPP) Center, to take over the operations of the country’s communications, navigation, surveillance/air traffic management system (CNS/ATM).

At the same event, Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) Director General Manuel Antonio Tamayo confirmed that ComClark’s proposal “is being considered.”

“ComClark submitted. It is being considered and that has to be evaluated, but nothing [is] final [yet] because it is an unsolicited [proposal],” he said.

The CAAP chief said the possible privatization of the CNS/ATM system would unburden the agency of its airports operator function, allowing it to focus on being a regulator.

“Ideally we should just be a regulator. What is heavy for us are the airports… we’re not supposed to operator of airports,” Tamayo said.

CAAP commercially operates over 40 airports all over the country. At the same time, it prescribes rules and regulations and enforces laws governing air transportation.

“There are some countries that privatize it [air traffic management],” he said.

CAAP operates the P10.8-billion new CNS/ATM system. The project, financed by the Japan International Cooperation Agency, was completed in October 2017 and commenced operations in July 2019.

The country’s air traffic management system is composed of 13 radars scattered across the country—Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 1 and 2, Clark, Tagaytay, Aparri, Laoag, Cebu-Mt. Majic, Quezon-Palawan, Zamboanga, Mactan, Bacolod, Kalibo, and Davao—covering 70% of the Philippines air space.

On September 30, CAAP completed its system upgrade of the CNS/ATM.

The upgrade came 20 months after the CAAP’s Philippine Air Traffic Management Center (ATMC), which houses the CNS/ATM system’s equipment, was hit by a massive power outage, resulting in the 2023 New Year's Day fiasco with hundreds of flights delayed or canceled.

In a text message to reporters, Uy, who also leads ComClark, confirmed the submission of a proposal to assist the government in handling the CNS/ATM.

“Yes, we have submitted a proposal to help the government in improving our air traffic systems. Together with our international partners, we have the technology, capability, and experience to ensure that our air transport system is among the safest and the best in the world,” Uy said.

ComClark, founded in 1996, was formed in partnership with Clark Telecom Inc., a subsidiary of PLDT Inc. The company provides satellite internet services, satellite communication networks, datacasting, and content delivery networks.

ComClark is the controlling shareholder of Converge ICT. — BM, GMA Integrated News