Posted on 11:12 PM, January 25, 2010 [ BusinessWorld Online ]
THE SUBIC BAY International Airport could be closed by the government as the facility has been rendered unprofitable by the closure of Federal Express’ (FedEx) delivery hub and the planned expansion of a nearby facility, an official yesterday said.
The airport’s shuttering is unlikely to occur within the year, but the state agency in charge of the Subic Freeport is already studying how to convert the space, Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority Administrator Armand C. Arreza told reporters who visited the freeport yeaterday.
"We are already studying the conversion of the airport. With the development of the Diosdado Macapagal International Airport (DMIA) in Clark, Pampanga, our airport is no longer feasible," he said in Filipino at the sidelines of a press briefing on Philip Morris International’s expansion plans in Subic.
‘How can we compete?’
The DMIA has been tagged as eventually replacing the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Manila as the country’s main entry point.
"Clark is just an hour away. Plus they do not charge landing and parking fees. How can we [compete]?" Mr. Arreza said, noting that 12-15 landings a day are needed just to break even.
At present, the airport is barely being used, save for rare landings from chartered flights or student pilots.
The decision comes even as several investors have expressed interest in using the Subic airport, he said.
Even with FedEx in operation, the airport just broke even, Mr. Arreza said.
The US delivery giant closed its regional hub there in February last year.
"We have to look at the financial feasibility," Mr. Arreza said, explaining that SBMA has to pay P250 million a year for maintenance costs, whether or not planes actually land there. -- Jessica Anne D. Hermosa
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