Three airports, one megapolis

SAN FRANCISCO – Those who criticize San Miguel’s proposal to build a world class airport in Bulacan because it is too close to Clark probably haven’t been to the Bay Area. They have three large international airports serving this megapolis and all three are thriving. In addition, there are about two dozen smaller airports to serve general aviation.

San Francisco International Airport is just across the bay to Oakland International Airport. Total driving distance between the two airports is 12 miles or 19 km, with a driving time of 19 minutes, flight distance is eight miles or 13 kilometers.

There was a time when my wife missed her SFO flight and took a later flight to Oakland. But her luggage was already on the plane to SFO.  My son had to go to SFO to pick up the luggage and then to Oakland to pick up my wife, all in a couple of hours to include some waiting and rush hour road traffic flow.

That’s how close the two airports are, a lot closer than the San Miguel airport in Bulacan is to Clark. Now that my son works in Silicon Valley, we are starting to use the San Jose International Airport, about 60 miles south of San Francisco for domestic hops, essentially from Long Beach near Los Angeles.

In 2016, San Francisco International Airport served more than 53.1 million passengers. Oakland International Airport served more than 12 million passengers that same year. Last year, the Oakland airport saw 14.6 million passengers.

On the other hand, San Jose International Airport served 10.8 million passengers in 2016,  with passenger growth exceeding 10 percent annually. Indeed, all three international airports have been serving ever more passengers as more domestic and international flights are added.

The entire NAIA (T1 to 4) has actually reached its design limit of 31.5 million passengers annually or MPA. The total passenger throughput is 39.6 MPA as of 2016 and is way over 40 million by now.

This goes to show that even if NAIA hits over 50 MPA, there is room for both San Miguel’s Bulacan airport and Clark to grow, if the experience in the Bay Area is any indication. The proposed Bulacan airport is also way further away from Clark compared to the distance between SFO International and Oakland airports.

If we know what is good for us, we should just go right ahead and let San Miguel start constructing that airport. It takes time to build a brand new airport and we are losing so much time arguing this and that, so typical of our bureaucracy.

I am concerned that it will take another six months for government to review again the San Miguel proposal. The DOF supposedly wants to be convinced that San Miguel has the financial muscle to deliver the project. Only after this review will they schedule a Swiss challenge.

I look at the San Miguel proposal as a no lose proposition for government and the country. First, no government money is at stake. All risk will be borne by the stockholders of San Miguel and its creditors. I understand there are enough banks and other financial institutions ready to support the project.

Second, it isn’t as if all our bets are on this project. If in the unlikely event the project gets into some difficulties, Clark should be ready to catch spill over traffic from NAIA. Indeed, even NAIA should be ready to take in more passengers, if government allows one of two unsolicited bids to execute their proposal.

Time is of the essence. Ramon Ang wants to deliver at least one terminal and two runways before the end of President Duterte’s term. With just four years left, they are running out of time.

As I have explained in previous columns, building the airport in this part of the growing Mega Manila will spur development in a long neglected area. Development mushroomed in the southern part of the megapolis and it is time the northern end gets some attention too.

And since San Miguel already owns the 2,500 hectares it initially needs, there will be no delays arising from right of way issues. It is also relevant to note that San Miguel is not just building an airport, but an aerotropolis with all the businesses that will be attracted to such a development.

Third, the project studies have been done. San Miguel will just have to refine their initial studies to plug in current numbers. We don’t have to waste more time doing more studies.

I have been so supportive of this San Miguel airport proposal because I see it as the only way we can have a decent airport that will not make me cringe each time I use it. The fact that it is private sector driven, we can expect it to move quickly from planning to execution.

A private sector proponent has the incentive to recover his investment and that won’t happen unless the airport starts operating. A private sector proponent also has the incentive to provide the right service and treat its customers right, or lose everything.

That means operations and maintenance will be light years away from what we are seeing in government managed airports like NAIA. For example, air conditioning systems will be properly maintained and when something breaks down, they will have the spare parts in storage to quickly remedy the situation.

Lastly, this is the best proposal on the table by way of ease of execution. No large scale reclamation is needed that will take as much time as is needed for constructing the airport.

Hopefully, DOF sees it this way too and facilitates the start of this project’s construction. It is a feather in Mr. Duterte’s cap that should cover up for delays in other BBB projects being done by government.

Boo Chanco’s e-mail address is [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @boochanco.