DOTC: NAIA Terminal 3 fully operational by July 31

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) on Thursday announced that the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3 will be fully airline operational by July 31.

“We are extremely pleased to confirm that full airline operations will begin at NAIA Terminal 3 next week. Our gateway airport will now be able to welcome 3.5 million more passengers with modern facilities every year, and Terminal 1 will now be considerably decongested to improve passenger convenience,” DOTC Secretary Jun Abaya said.

“The Manila International Airport Authority has informed us that Delta Airlines will have its first flight out of Terminal 3 on August 1st, while KLM Royal Dutch Airlines will move within the first week of August. Singapore Airlines, Emirates, and Cathay Pacific will follow suit by the end of next month. These five carriers have the highest volume of international flights coming in and out of NAIA, so we look forward to giving them a new home,” Abaya added.

The project was awarded in 1997 and it's supposed completion was in 2002, but legal issues related to its bidding process mired the project. The scheduled completion of the project was moved to 2008, but during the year the terminal was only 52 percent operational.

Faced with this situation, then-DOTC Secretary Mar Roxas initiated talks with Terminal 3’s original contractor, Takenaka Corporation of Japan, to complete its facilities regardless of the ongoing cases.

“When I assumed office in October 2012, I continued Secretary Roxas’ negotiations with Takenaka until we were able to convince them in July last year to finish the project,” Abaya said.

Takenaka’s $40 million-contract began in August last year. Over the past year, the Japanese firm has undertaken completion works for systems such as, flight information displays, computer terminals, gate coordination, landing bridges, and fire protection systems.

The DOTC said that as of July 18 this year, around 85 percent of these works had been completed. Certain systems which are non-critical to full airline operations, such as the building maintenance system, will be completed within the year.

The transfer of the  five airlines will reduce Terminal 1’s annual passenger throughput from the current 8 million down to its design capacity of 4.5 million. This will free up more space at Terminal 1 and reduce the number of travelers affected by the ongoing rehabilitation works, the DOTC added.