Clark airport expansion to start in April

MANILA, Philippines – The second phase of the P360 million expansion project for Clark International Airport is expected to start in April.

This is according to Clark International Airport Corp. (CIAC) President Victor Jose Luciano during an interview with reporters on Tuesday, MArch 26. “We will start the expansion next month,” he said.

Luciano said that the expansion is meant to increase the airport’s capacity to 4 million passengers. Currently, the airport has a capacity of 2.5 million.

Luciano said that CIAC has submitted a proposal to the Department of Transportation and Communication (DOTC) for the construction of a P12 billion terminal. The proposed terminal is designed to accommodate at least 10 million to 12 million passengers per year.

The agency has allotted P100 million for a feasibility study of the Clark Civil Aviation Complex.

The CIAC signed a P1 billion loan with Land Bank of the Philippines to finance the second phase of the expansion project in February 2012. Luciano said that CIAC plans to source more funds for the project from the domestic market. Currently, the CIAC has a loan application pending with Monetary Board of the BSP.

Clark International Airport is expected to service 2 million tourists this 2013. The volume of passengers in Clark Airport grew by 71% to 1.3 million passengers in 2012 due to the operations of budget airlines.

The expansion of the capacity of the Clark airport airport in Pampanga through the construction of a new passenger terminal is meant to support some group’s target to make the former US air base serve as an alternative to the congested Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) in Manila. 

President Benigno Aquino III is set to announce whether the administration would adopt a single or twin-airport system through the joint development of the NAIA and Clark international airports. – Rappler.com