Multi-airport plans for Mega Manila pressed

Trade groups cannot seem to stress enough to the government the need to start right away the construction of sev­eral international airports to replace the ageing Ninoy Aquino International Air­port (Naia) as they aired dire warnings that the current congestion at the sole in­ternational airport in Manila was a grave threat to tourism and trade.

Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) President George Barcelon asked last Thursday during the PCCI tourism forum: “Where should the new International airport be located?” even as he and various trade groups are pressing the government to make a “de­finitive decision” not just to build a one international airport in Metro Manila but to also open other major international airports in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao within the next six years.

But government appears to be taking its time on the matter; so far, the trade groups have not received a satisfactory answer.

By opening other international air­ports, Barcelon said, air traffic at Naia would not only ease, but the country would also be prepared to receive some 20 million foreign tourists over the medi­um term.

With more airports, the PCCI chief added, the Philippines could be on a par with leading tourist destinations in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), such as Malaysia, Thailand, and Singapore.

In the forum, All-Asia Resources and Reclamation Corporation (ARRC), a joint venture of the Henry Sy’s SM Group and the Tieng family’s Solar Group, presented its P800-billion Sangley gateway project that it said would not only help solve the airport congestion but also relieve Metro Manila of its seaport and vehicular traffic problems.

“Our proposed project will make Metro Manila and its surrounding envi­rons a better place to live, work, and travel in. You will see almost no container trucks on the road and going to the airport will be easier because Sangley is the best location there is,” Wilson Tieng, ARRC vice chairman, said.

It will take only a few min­utes from Roxas Boulevard to the proposed international air­port, he said.

“Roxas boulevard is also accessible via the Skyway from Muntinlupa and with the soon-to-be completed connec­tor road, even from NLEX and port area,” he added.

Tieng said All-Asia expects to finish without using a single government centavo the air­port component of the gateway project within five years from getting the notice to proceed.

The project includes the reclamation portion which a huge Chinese company will undertake on a turnkey basis, he said.

All-Asia had also submit­ted a separate unsolicited pro­posal to rehabilitate and devel­op the current Danilo Atienza airport in Sangley to absorb Naia’s general aviation and smaller low-cost-carriers, in­cluding Skyjet, which the Tieng Group owns.

“We can finish this small­er project at our own expense within one year. This means Naia should be able to handle more commercial flights by next year if we get the go-sig­nal from the government this month, for example,” he said.

The Danilo Atienza run­way will then be the third run­way for All-Asia’s international airport. “We learned from the lessons of Naia so we want this shorter runway to stay and complement our initial two long international runways that will be only for commercial flights,” Tieng added.

Edmundo Lim, All-Asia vice chairman, said the port area in Manila should even­tually move to the company’s proposed seaport since almost all of the industrial estates are in southern Luzon.

“The old businesses that used to be nearby have all gone South. Sangley, again, offers the best location for imports and exports whether via the seaport or the airport. And with the manufacturing hub that will be a part of our gateway project, there is no need for trucks to even set foot in Metro Manila,” Lim said.

No other project can match All-Asia’s Sangley gate­way project and Danilo Atienza proposal in terms of addressing all forms of congestion over the medium term, and making Naia more efficient within a year, he said.

“Sangley’s location is the key. Sangley will serve the southern part of Metro Manila as well as the progressive region Calabarzon while we believe that Clark should serve the north and must therefore be significantly upgraded in terms of terminal and infrastructure development,” Lim said.

“Our project is just the start of the metamorphosis of Metro Manila. We will make it more livable and a source of pride for us Filipinos,” he add­ed.

Barcelon pointed out that the number of tourists coming to the Philippines, while on the upswing, “pales when com­pared to the number of tourists traveling to other Asean mem­bers.” Thailand, he said, has about 13 million tourist arriv­als each year compared to the Philippines’ 6 million.

“Given this situation we are not only losing out on the growing international tourism to our neighboring countries but likewise affecting the move­ment of goods and services,” he added.

Barcelon said the crafting of an airport policy and a mas­terplan for the aviation sector is also needed in order to effec­tively address lingering issues of connectivity and congestion, regional development, and sus­tainable growth.

He added that the govern­ment has been given the lead time to study the various pro­posals for a new airport, and “this time the decision is ur­gently needed to act on them.”

The business executive spoke at a forum March 2 in Makati City on plans for the new international airport.

Philippine Exporters Con­federation, Inc. (Philexport) President Sergio Ortiz-Luis, Jr., similarly stressed the urgent need to identify and develop an alternative airport to Naia.

He asked the government to take a decisive action on studies and proposals to mod­ernize the country’s airport sys­tem and adopt a multi-airport system.

“The next step is to act on them [recommendations] deci­sively and swiftly before tourists and investors make a U-turn to other destinations,” he added.

In the same event, Alexan­der Cauguiran, president and CEO of Clark International Airport, outlined the expansion plans to make Clark the pre­mier airport of Northern Lu­zon.

There is also a proposal from San Miguel Corp. to build a new P700-billion interna­tional airport in Bulacan.

John Forbes, senior advisor to the American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, said the multi-airport approach is a common practice overseas, including in London, which operates five airports.

A representative from a travel agency association said more airports would be a boost to tourism-related ser­vices.

A representative of flag carrier Philippines Airlines said that while building new airports would make it more convenient for carriers, the government should not forget to look at the project cost and its impact on airport charges to airlines, as higher operat­ing costs will make Philippine carriers uncompetitive.