Iata: DMIA can’t replace Naia

The International Air Transport Association (Iata), the global regulator of the international airline industry, has urged the Philippines to promote the Diosdado Macapagal International Airport (DMIA) in Pampanga as “temporary support” and “interim solution” to relieve the growing demands of international travelers coming to the country.

Iata, which oversees airports and 84 percent of the air traffic of its250 member-airlines, in a report titled “Immediate and long-term priorities for Manila airports,” also urged the government to “optimize” the operations of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia), its congested main gateway.

But while recommending DMIA as temporary support, Iata said the Pampanga airport, located at the former US Clark Air Force Base “lacks connectivity” to make it an alternative to Naia.

The transfer of Naia flights to Clark has long been advocated by former Nueva Ecija Rep. Renato Diaz, now chairman of the Center for Strategic Initiatives.

In a study he e-mailed to The Market Monitor, Diaz— the former chairman of the House Committee on Ways and Means, said flight congestion at Naia was giving the country’s image a black eye. About 85 percent of investors, tourists and returning residents come in via Naia, he said, and delays in Naia flights—sometimes lasting 1.5 hours—are, in turn, delaying flights in regional airports, since pilots there are advised not to take off due to the congestion in Manila.

Naia has only one effective runway and is operating beyond normal limits, since its two runways were built in the shape of a T, so only one can be used at a time.

“The real solution is to move as many flights to Clark International Airport, which has two world-class run- ways. There is also a space to build a third runway [that] will conform to international standards,” the study said.

If the name Diosdado Macapagal International Airport bothers top officials of the administration, “they could it changed to Ninoy Aquino International Airport II; I don’t think it would make any difference. The important is that the transfer should be effected,” Diaz said.

A research paper that Standard Chartered Bank released earlier also said the lack of connecting roads to Manila prevents DMIA from becoming a substitute to Naia, “at least not in the near future.”

“The minimum three to four-hour drive from DMIA to Manila is not acceptable to majority of travelers, and building a high-speed rail system to link the two is financially demanding and clearly not on the government’s radar,” Standard Chartered said.

Iata also said in its report: “DMIA can be used as an interim solution to alleviate some of the current capacity issues, but should not be developed to become the long-term primary gateway. Rather, it could operate as an aviation maintenance center and for other aviation support industries, or be developed into the major low cost/point-to-point air carrier airport in the area.”

DMIA, despite its ambition to become a gateway for Metro Manila as it lobbies government and foreign air- lines to use it, is handicapped because “the distance of 100 kilometers from the Manila city center to Clark is a major challenge and the lack of surface land or rail transportation is a barrier to connectivity,” Iata said.

It added that minimum connection times for passengers attempting to transfer between flights at different airports would be extremely “uncompetitive and uneconomic” for airlines to operate, compared with industry norms.

Iata said the first and immediate priority should be the maximization of effective capacity and throughput at the Naia. In lieu of short-term investments, Iata is proposing the optimization of the current capacity of Naia through more efficient air-traffic control and improvements in the runway system, particularly through the addition of rapid exit taxiways.

The target at Naia is “to increase the through- put from the existing 40 movements per hour to 51 or even 56 movements per hour,” Iata said, adding that an increase of 40 percent in capacity would go a long way in reducing the congestion at the airport.

“The relatively newer DMIA is well positioned to service travelers from northern Philippines. DMIA has ambitions to become a hub of Metro Manila and there are major expansion plans to reach a capacity of 80 million passengers per annum by 2025.

“DMIA has been identified as a possible alternative in meeting both current and future demand for the Manila region,” Iata reported.

Naia has terminals with a capacity of 31 million passengers per annum, with one main runway and another crossway runway.

Over the years, a number of options have been proposed, including a combination of expanding facilities at Naia, developing DMIA as the main airport or a new airport altogether. Lately, discussions have focused on three scenarios, namely:

A single airport system wherein the government would shut down and sell Naia and develop Clark International Airport in Pampanga.

A twin or dual system wherein the government would develop Clark while maximizing the operations of Naia until 2025, but at the same time look for an alter- native site for a new airport that would be 25 kilometers or 30 minutes away from the existing gateway.

A twin or dual system wherein the government would jointly develop Clark and the Naia and then decide whether or not to put up an alternative airport.