AirAsia’s Clark hub possible with ‘Build, Build, Build’

MANILA -- Mobile services provider Smart Communications reported that it has managed to post P14.8 billion in service revenues for the first quarter of this year higher by 2 percent from the previous year driven by ongoing improvements on its mobile data network.

Wireless individual service revenues reached P6.5 billion during the first quarter which was up by 21 percent year on year compared to the same period last year with mobile data services contributing 44 percent of its revenues.

“The contribution from data and digital to our total business continues to grow steadily. We will accelerate this further as we transform our networks into powerful platforms for delivering digital services and solutions. This will enable us to more effectively pursue our goal of becoming the preferred digital partner of our customers,” Ernesto Alberto, PLDT and Smart Executive Vice President and Chief Revenue Officer, said in a statement Monday, May 21.

Smart has installed more than 1,300 Long Term Evolution (LTE) base stations for the first three months of 2018 leading to a total of more than 10,000 stations nationwide.

These facilities utilize various radio frequency bands particularly the 700 megahertz (MHz) band for better coverage and penetration and the 1,800 MHz and 2,100 MHz bands for additional capacity.

The rollout of LTE services has resulted in the number of LTE subscribers tripling year-on-year, posting an increase of 211 percent.

Luzon, where more than half of the LTE sites were deployed in the past six months, likewise posted a 5 percent revenue growth in the first quarter.

The installation of multiple LTE base stations in existing cell sites has brought about the activation of LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) technology which can deliver faster mobile data services to subscribers.

“On mobile, as shown by the experience of other countries, the network rollout must be accompanied by the adoption of LTE-Advanced-capable mobile phones and devices,” according to Mario Tamayo, PLDT-Smart Senior Vice President for Network Planning and Engineering.

Smart has also expanded its network coverage to include high

MANILA -- Low-cost carrier AirAsia will have its headquarters in Clark as soon as the infrastructure there finishes under the government’s “Build, Build, Build” program, its chief executive officer (CEO) bared to the Philippine News Agency (PNA) on Friday, May 18.

“I need the NLEX, SLEX connector. These may be done by late next year. I need the MRT to be finished in three years. There are already P2P buses from NAIA to Clark,” AirAsia Philippines CEO Dexter Comendador said.

All these things were the carrier’s problems when it started operating in Clark in 2013, he added.

“That’s the reason why we left Clark for a while. We started there with two planes, but passengers from Manila could not go there because of the aforementioned connectors,” Comendador noted.

AirAsia Philippines has operated in Clark from 2013 to 2015, he related.

The Malaysian airline CEO acknowledged the Philippine government’s efforts in addressing the problem.

“As soon as (President Rodrigo) Duterte assumed his office, the CEOs of different airlines met with him and told him our problems in the aviation industry, hence the ‘Build, Build, Build’. As you can see, there are also several airports being foot traffic areas such as tourist spots like Baguio, Sagada, and Batanes, among others, in line with its commitment to the National Telecommunications Commission to bring high-speed mobile data using LTE, LTE-A built. The President stayed true to his word, and we’re glad about it,” Comendador shared.

In preparing for AirAsia’s comeback in Clark, he said he already put one plane there since the start of 2018.

The AirAsia Group currently has 220 planes, and it targets to more than double this to 520 planes in the next 15 years.

“(AirAsia Philippines) should have a total of 22 planes by the end of the year. Currently, we have 18. On average of five planes a year, that will be 50 planes in 10 years. So we should have 72 planes 10 years from now,” he revealed.

The CEO added that he’s already thinking where he can put the additional 50 planes, and that he’s thinking of Clark Airport for this.

Meanwhile, Comendador said part of AirAsia Philippines’ strategy is to develop a secondary hub, and exposing this to the whole network of AirAsia Group.

“When I create that hub, it’s going to be connected to our international network, just like what we did in Kalibo, Cebu, and in Panglao when it opens. In Davao, we have already introduced the Davao-Kuala Lumpur route,” he said.

Comendador added that for the past 16 years, the group already has 50 million loyal customers in its database. and 3G to over 90 percent of the country’s cities and municipalities.

Its parent company PLDT has allocated P58 billion as capital expenditures for this year for the rollout of its fixed and mobile services.