Vol. XXI, No. 200 [ Business World Online ]
Tuesday, May 13, 2008 | MANILA, PHILIPPINES
SAN JOSE, ANTIQUE — The small airport here will get renovated in anticipation of the resumption of commercial flights between Manila and Antique.
Antique Airport Manager Martin T. Terre said the project includes the extension of the 1,200-meter runway to 2,000 meters and the expansion of the passenger terminal and administration buildings.
A three-storey control tower with modern equipment will be built by the Air Navigation Service (ANS) using funds from the Air Transportation Office (ATO), Mr. Terre said.
The ATO will also finance the installation of runway lights, estimated at P16 million.
"Currently, the airport does not have runway lights, which is a problem to us in catering to evening flights," Mr. Terre said.
There were commercial flights to Antique from April 2003 until June 30, 2006. Mr. Terre said Asian Spirit used to carry an average of 80 passengers per flight. The passenger volume, however, dwindled to six at its last flight in 2006.
"Personally, I don’t have any idea why Asian Spirit stopped flying to Antique. But I think the decreasing number of passengers could be one of the reasons," Mr. Terre added.
Antique Governor Salvacion Z. Perez said a budget airline that serves tourist destinations has proposed to launch a commercial flight to Antique in October. "This could boost our economy. It will also make travel easier for Antiqueños since we won’t have to travel to Iloilo just to take a flight," she said.
Aside from the Antique Airport, there are three other airports on Panay Island. The busiest is the Caticlan airport in Kalibo, Aklan because of the huge volume of travelers to and from Boracay Island. The Caticlan airport also caters to international flights.
The other functional airports are in Iloilo City, where a modern airport opened in January this year, and Roxas City in Capiz. — Harthwell C. Capistrano
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