Locators urge firm decision on fate of Clark airport

MANILA, Philippines - Locators inside the Clark Freeport and special economic zone are urging the Aquino administration to decide with finality whether the Clark International Airport would serve as an alternate gateway in the Philippines after the congested Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).

Jeff Pradhan, former president of Clark Investors and Locators Association (CILA), said in a press conference that businesses inside the former US military naval base have suffered due to the indecision of the government over the fate of the international airport in Pampanga.

Pradhan told reporters that investors inside the freeport zone is seeking a more pronounced decision from the Aquino administration.

“It comes down to lost opportunities. They want to see further improvement by the government rather than constant changing of minds,” he added.

For one, Singapore Airlines through SIA Engineering Co. has tied up with Cebu Air Inc. (Cebu Pacific) of taipan John L. Gokongwei Jr. in 2008 to put up a hangar and a maintenance, repair, and overhaul facility and spent P1 billion in 2010 to establish a second hangar.

Likewise, Hong Kong-based Metrojet Engineering Clark has also established a $40 million MRO facility to cater to fixed-based operations for corporate jets.

For his part, Clark International Airport Corp. adviser Capt. Benjamin Solis told reporters that the government should act quickly on the development of the Clark international airport as the NAIA is already 40 percent over the capacity of its terminals and runway.

“They have not made up their minds and that is the problem,” Solis stressed.

Solis, former general manager of UPS-Delbros, pointed out that the development of the Clark international airport as an alternative gateway to NAIA would be cheaper compared to putting up a new airport or putting up a high-speed railway.

According to him, the distance going to Clark which is about 90 kilometers should not be an issue as airports in other countries are located outside the cities rather than in the center of the central business districts.

“Distance is irrelevant, it is a flexible item. In other countries, all airports are far from the city. NAIA is an old airport in a large city with no other gateway and yet Clark is still not a viable option,” he lamented.

Solis said the government should speed up the development of the gateway in Pampanga by adopting a twin airport system wherein the Clark international airport should co-exist with NAIA.

He revealed that the CIAC is set to present to the National and Economic Development Authority (NEDA) the proposed P6 billion terminal project at the international gateway in Pampanga that could serve 15 million passengers per year.

The proposed project would be presented to the NEDA - Investment Coordination Committee (NEDA-ICC) in March before it would be forward to the NEDA board chaired by President Aquino for approval.

Solis said there is a need to put up the new passenger terminal that could handle 15 million passengers with the projected passenger traffic with the start of operations by Emirates and the ongoing expansion of AirAsia Inc.

Airlines operating in the former US military naval base expects to service six million passengers. The international gateway serviced 1.3 million passengers last year.

According to him, the proposed passenger terminal project could be offered under the Aquino administration’s public-private partnership (PPP) scheme as several private corporations are interested in the development.

Based on the land-use plan, he said about 30 hectares of the 2,400 hectare airport property behind the passenger terminal covering 700 hectares could be used for commercial development.