history of CAAP

II. Introduction
Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines is the attached agency of Department of Transportation and Communication responsible for the regulation of aircraft and airmen, maintenance of aerodrome and navigation facilities and air traffic services.
The civil aviation history in the Philippines started as early as 1931, decades before the Convention on International Civil Aviation was signed in 1944.
Legislative Act No. 3909 passed by the Philippine Legislature on November 1931 created the Office of Technical Assistant of Aviation Matters under the Department of Commerce and Communications. The office handled aviation matters, particularly he enforcement of rules and regulations governing commercial aviation as well as private flying. LA No. 3909 was amended by Act 3996 to include licensing of airmen and aircraft, inspection of aircraft concerning air traffic rules, schedules and rates and enforcement of Aviation Laws.
From 1932 to 1936, there were no standard procedures as to the licensing of airmen, registration of aircraft and recording of various aeronautical activities connected with commercial aviation. There were attempts made to register planes and their owners without ascertaining their airworthiness and to record names of pilots, airplane mechanics and other details.
In 1933, the Office of Technical Assistant of Aviation Matters became the Aeronautics Division under the Department of Commerce and Communications, the functions of which were embodied in Administrative Order No. 309, a joint bulletin issuedby the Department of Publics Works and Communications and the Department of Finance.
In October 1934, Act 4033 was passed to require a franchise from the Philippine Government in order to operate an air service and to regulate foreign aircraft operations.
On November 1936, he Philippine Legislature passed Commonwealth Act No. 168, better known as the Civil Aviation Law of the Philippines, which created be Bureau of Aeronautics. After the liberation of the Philippines in March 1945, the Bureau was reorganized and placed under he Department of National Defense. Among its functions was to promulgate Civil Aviation Regulations.
On October 1947, Executive Order No. 94, which reorganized the government, transferred the Bureau of Aeronautics to the newly created Department of Commerce and Industry and renamed it as Civil Aeronautics Administration.
On June 1948, Republic Act No. 224 created the National Airports Corporation which was charged with the management and operation of all national airports.
On June 1952, Republic Act No. 776 otherwise known as the Civil Aeronautics Act of the Philippines reorganized he CAA and another aviation agency called the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB). It defined the powers and duties of both agencies including its funding, personnel and the regulations of Civil Aviation.
On October 1956, Executive Order No. 209 placed the CAA under the administrative supervision and control of the Department of Public Works, Transportation and Communication.
On January 1975, Letter of Instruction No. 244 transferred to the Department of Public Highways the responsibilities relative to airport plans, designs, construction, improvement, maintenance as well as site acquisition. The responsibilities related to location, planning, design and funding were later returned to the CAA.
On July 1979, through Executive Order No. 546, the CAA was renamed as Bureau of Air Transportation (BAT) and placed under the Ministry of Transportation and Communications.
On April 1987 Executive Order No. 125 renamed the Bureau of Transportation to Air Transportation Office headed by the Assistant Secretary for Air Transportation.
On March 4, 2008, Republic Act No. 9497 renamed the Air Transportation Office the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines headed by the Director General of Civil Aviation
The Authority's mission is to be a pre-eminent Civil Aviation Authority in the world and a global brand of excellence in aviation. Its mission is to ensure a safe, secure and green Philippine sky.