CEBU CITY, Philippines – Should flights from Tacloban to Luzon be redirected to Clark? Airline carriers serving the Tacloban-Manila route previously made this suggestion to the Department of Transportation (DOTr) Secretary Arthur Tugade in an effort to decongest the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) in Metro Manila.

A proposal from the Secretary Michael Dino of the Office of the Presidential Assistant for the Visayas suggested, however,to only redirect half of the flights to the Clark International Airport.

A resolution from the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) Tacloban-Leyte Chapter told Dino that redirecting all flights from Tacloban to Clark would have an averse effect on local industries.

Among the reasons cited in the resolution: higher airfare and land transportation costs, higher air freight costs; extended travel time, and “hassle and inconvenience.”

Dino’s office shared the letters addressed to President Rodrigo Duterte and Tugade with Rappler on Monday, August 15. The letter said, “we found the plan to reroute Tacloban-Manila flights to Clark International Airport to mean additional handling cost for the delivery of live seafood from Samar intended for the Metro Manila hotels and restaurants.”

“The proposal was upon the suggestion of the airline carriers to the DOTr, but Secretary Tugade is open to the idea of rerouting half of the flights from not just Tacloban, but the Visayas, to Clark,” said Jonji Gonzales, Dino’s chief of staff told Rappler in a phone interview.

While the proposal to reroute flights from Tacloban was a suggestion from the chamber of commerce in Leyte and Samar, the suggestion to redirect all flights from the Visayas came from Dino’s office. The letter said that they would assist the DOTr in hosting public consultations with stakeholders should the office pursue the suggestion.

On July 19, Tugade said in order to make using Clark a viable alternative to the overcrowded NAIA, that within 90 days, he would submit plans to connect the airport in Pampanga to Metro Manila via train or a connector road.

Last July 18, dozens of flights were cancelled, diverted or delayed, after a crack was discovered on one of the runways that could have potentially damaged aircraft. Tugade had apologized to passengers, some of whom had to wait for up to 8 hours for their rescheduled flights.  

NAIA takes in an average of 32 million passengers per year, making it the busiest airport in the country. Terminal congestion is the main culprit for its notorious flight delays. While there have been calls for the government to build an international airport in nearby Sangley Point, Cavite, Duterte said he was “not sure” if they government would have enough funds for such a project. – Rappler.com