04/10/2008 [ tribune.net.ph ]
The Old Manila Airport will no longer be an old airport as its expansion and rehabilitation will be completed on April 15, the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) announced yesterday.
MIAA general manager Alfonso Cusi said the Mania Domestic Airport (MDA) will sport a new look that can accommodate a bigger number of passengers even during peak hours.
He added MIAA and Cebu Pacific have jointly started the expansion of the MDA which will be completed on April 15.
“The expansion of the domestic airport facilities will increase its seating capacity by 66 percent and ease passenger congestion, especially during the peak season,” he said.
The domestic airport was built in 1948, serving all local airline flights, except Philippine Airlines and Air Philippines, which use the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 2 for international and domestic flights.
The improvements include placing canopies in passenger queuing and loading areas and making the facility’s interior more spacious for the easy and convenient movement of passengers.
The seating capacity at the pre-departure area of the domestic airport will increase by 66 percent with the addition of more than 500 seats.
Cusi said a new arrival area will be opened and five new baggage conveyors instead of the present three conveyors were constructed.
The flight check-in lobby and security check areas were expanded and more boarding gates, holding areas and restrooms were constructed to double the capacity.
Cebu Pacific will relocate its cargo receiving area to pave the way for the new arrival area.
Although the project is a joint effort by the MIAA and Cebu Pacific, all other airlines that serve the domestic routes wil continue to operate at the domestic airport, Cusi said.
“It will not be the exclusive use of Cebu Pacific unlike the NAIA Terminal 2 where Philippine Airlines has the sole right to use it,” he added. Conrado Ching
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