Gov’t to start rehab of Sangley airbase

The government plans to “jump-start” the rehabilitation of the Sangley Airbase in Cavite, which would serve as a possible transfer site for general aviation activities that are now still based in the congested Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Manila.

Manuel Antonio Tamayo, deputy director general at the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines, said initial funding has been allocated to resurface the runway at Sangley, which has been shortened through years of deterioration and neglect.

Tamayo said Sangley’s runway was now about 1,200 meters, nearly half of the original 2,300 meters. He said jet aircraft needed at least 1,800 meters to take off or land.

“We can’t do jet operations right now,” Tamayo said in recent interview. He said an initial P50-million funding realignment was approved by the board to start resurfacing activities at Sangley. The objective was to bring the runway closer to its  original 2,300-meter length.

Rehabilitation efforts at Sangley are needed as the Department of Transportation also urged private jet owners to relocate their aircraft from Naia to other airports like Sangley or Clark International Airport in Pampanga.

The DOTr said moving general aviation out of Naia could free up about 20 percent of runway usage at the country’s busiest air gateway.

Private jet owners, including San Miguel Corp. president Ramon Ang, taipan Lucio Tan and ports magnate Enrique Razon Jr., signaled they were open to housing their aircraft in alternative airports.

Tamayo said these steps were being taken as the DOTr waits for emergency powers from lawmakers. According to the DOTr, the  full development of Sangley Airbase for general aviation could cost about P1 billion and would take about 10 months to complete, assuming special powers were granted.

The Duterte administration was moving to address air congestion around Naia, which was designed to handle about 31 million passengers annually but last year, that figure already hit 36.7 million passengers.

Clark was the closest alternative air gateway, however, the government has struggled to lure traffic there due to the lack of an efficient mass transit connection like a train system to Metro Manila.

Recently, two new airport proposals have emerged from the private sector. One was backed by taipan Henry Sy’s Belle Corp. in partnership with the Tieng family’s Solar Group for a massive airport reclamation project in Sangley Point, Cavite.