JUNE 30 — President Benigno S. Aquino III on Monday inspected the area where the new P3.75-billion Puerto Princesa Airport is being built.
Upon arriving here, the President proceeded to the open ramp at the earth mount barrier between the Western Command’s Air Defense Alert Center and the construction site of the new Puerto Princesa Airport for the inspection.
He was briefed by Transportation Undersecretary Julianito Bucayan regarding the Puerto Princesa Airport Development Project, located in Barangay San Miguel, Puerto Princesa, Palawan.
The project, which is expected to be completed by January 2017, was 29.12 percent complete as of last March.
It is being financed by the Export-Import Bank of Korea under the operation and management of the Economic Development Cooperation Fund of Korea.
“The project is designed to enhance the quality of airport services in Palawan to comply with International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) safety standards; and expand the Puerto Princesa International Airport’s capacity to address the growing air traffic in Palawan,” said Bucayan.
He noted that the new airport is expected to accommodate two million passengers per annum, with a peak passenger flow of 690 passengers per hour; and generate as much as 52,000 jobs when it is completed.
It will feature a cargo terminal, a fire and rescue/firefighting facility, a maintenance building, a power house, and a state-of-the-art air traffic control tower with air navigation aid, in compliance with ICAO Category 1 standards.
The new airport also aims to revitalize the transport and trade linkages under the Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia and Philippines-East ASEAN Growth Area. PND (ag) (Puerto Princesa, Palawan)
