Clark airport execs prepare for NAIA ‘saturation point’

CLARK FIELD, Pampanga – The Clark International Airport Corp. (CIAC) is rushing its plans to upgrade the Diosdado Macapagal International Airport (DMIA) for completion by 2010 when the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), with its limited runway space, is expected to reach its "saturation point."

CIAC chairman Nestor Mangio said the priority projects for the DMIA include a new and bigger passenger terminal, a general freight terminal, maintenance, repair and overhaul facilities, the first phase of a gateway terminal, and an airport plaza.

These projects will be covered by a $2-million feasibility study to be proposed for funding by the Korean International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) as soon as the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) endorses it.

The projects comprise only the first phase of the master plan for the DMIA, Mangio said.

CIAC president and chief executive officer Victor Jose Luciano said the feasibility study to be conducted by KOICA will also identify possible funding sources for the projects under the first phase of the master plan.

"There is a timeframe and process involved in finding modes for funding," he said.

Luciano said the projects have to be fast-tracked and finished by 2010 when the NAIA is expected to reach its saturation point due to its limited runway space.

CIAC, which operates the DMIA, marked its 12th anniversary yesterday with a vow to pursue plans to transform the airport into the country’s major international gateway.

In 2006, Luciano said the DMIA posted 2,065 international flights with 470,867 passengers, a 110 percent increase from the previous year’s 224,497 passengers on 1,188 flights.

In 2004, 230 international flights were recorded with 49,546 passengers.

Luciano also cited reports that domestic flights at the DMIA reached 432 with 9,442 passengers in 2004; 455 flights with 7,816 passengers in 2005; and 443 flights with17,889 passengers last year. 

He also reported that terminal fee collections at the DMIA increased by 126 percent, from P35,863,650 in 2005 to P81,097,750 in 2006.

Combined international and domestic cargo tonnage also increased 15 percent from 112,266 tons in 2005 to 128,747 tons in 2006. In 2004, only 108,162 tons of cargo passed through the airport.