Laoag International Airport
Laoag International Airport Sangalubongan a Pagpatayaban ti Laoag Paliparang Pandaigdig ng Laoag | |||||||||||
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 Exterior of Laoag International Airport | |||||||||||
| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | Public | ||||||||||
| Operator | Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines | ||||||||||
| Serves | Laoag | ||||||||||
| Location | Laoag, Ilocos Norte, Philippines | ||||||||||
| Time zone | PHT (UTC+08:00) | ||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 8 m / 25 ft | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 18°10′41″N 120°31′55″E / 18.17806°N 120.53194°E | ||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||
.svg)  LAO/RPLI Location in the Philippines | |||||||||||
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| Runways | |||||||||||
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| Statistics (2017) | |||||||||||
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Source: Statistics from eFOI[1] | |||||||||||
Laoag International Airport (Template:Lang-ilo, Template:Lang-fil) (IATA: LAO, ICAO: RPLI) is the main airport serving the general area of Laoag, the capital city of the province of Ilocos Norte in the Philippines. It is the only airport in Ilocos Norte and is the northernmost international airport in the Philippines by geographical location. The airport is a popular charter destination for tourists from China.
It has one 2,420-meter runway[2] and is designated as a secondary/alternate international airport by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines, a body of the Department of Transportation that is responsible for the operations of not only this airport but also of all other airports in the Philippines except the major international airports.[3]
History
The airport was constructed by Americans before World War II as Gabu Airfield. The Japanese occupied the base on December 1941 and subsequently used it. During the Luzon campaign to retake the islands from the Japanese, Major Simeon Valdez led a raid on the airfield, burning the headquarters and setting fire to a fuel dump. Similar attacks follow in the succeeding days until its recapture on 15 February 1945 when it was abandoned due to Commonwealth military and guerrilla raids. By April 1945 the airfield was again operational hosting fighter and transport aircraft.[4] The airfield became a staging area for flights and air missions against Japanese forces in Northern Luzon by April and Okinawa by June 1945.[5]
After the war, the airfield was converted into a civilian airport.
The airport became one of the stops of the Breitling DC-3 World Tour held in 2017. The aircraft, a Douglas DC-3 with the registration number HB-IRJ landed for refueling in April as part of a round-the-world flight to celebrate the plane's 77th birthday.
Airlines and destinations
| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| China Eastern Airlines | Charter: Guangzhou[6] |
| Philippine Airlines operated by PAL Express | Manila |
| Royal Air Charter | Charter: Macau |
Codeshare Flights
All of these code share flights are operated by Philippine Airlines on behalf of these airlines.
Statistics
Data from Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP).[1]
Passenger movements
| Year | Domestic | International | Total | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 35,766 | 149,995 | 185,761 | 
|
| 2003 | 32,793 | 66,894 | 99,687 |  46.34%
|
| 2004 | 43,435 | 91,434 | 134,869 |  35.29%
|
| 2005 | 52,131 | 67,331 | 119,462 | 11.42%
|
| 2006 | 55,677 | 73,180 | 128,857 | 7.86%
|
| 2007 | 96,444 | 46,162 | 142,606 | 10.67%
|
| 2008 | 117,646 | 38,673 | 156,319 | 9.62%
|
| 2009 | 125,087 | 10,386 | 135,473 | 13.34%
|
| 2010 | 147,883 | 29,456 | 177,339 | 30.90%
|
| 2011 | 144,073 | 2,606 | 146,679 | 17.29%
|
| 2012 | 180,097 | 7,951 | 188,048 | 28.20%
|
| 2013 | 232,034 | 10,982 | 243,016 | 29.23%
|
| 2014 | 193,237 | 3,200 | 196,437 | 19.17%
|
| 2015 | 175,529 | 29,021 | 204,550 | 4.13%
|
| 2016 | 188,664 | 15,492 | 204,156 | 0.19%
|
| 2017 | 146,960 | 14,059 | 161,019 | 21.13%
|
Aircraft movements
| Year | Domestic | International | Total | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 2,384 | 1,796 | 4,180 |
|
| 2003 | 3,378 | 1,382 | 4,760 | 13.88%
|
| 2004 | 2,444 | 1,446 | 3,890 | 18.28%
|
| 2005 | 1,658 | 1,660 | 3,318 | 14.70%
|
| 2006 | 1,344 | 1,814 | 3,158 | 4.82%
|
| 2007 | 1,844 | 542 | 2,386 | 24.45%
|
| 2008 | 2,724 | 394 | 3,118 | 30.68%
|
| 2009 | 3,002 | 188 | 3,190 | 2.31%
|
| 2010 | 1,231 | 212 | 1,443 | 54.76%
|
| 2011 | 953 | 152 | 1,105 | 23.42%
|
| 2012 | 2,912 | 68 | 2,980 | 169.68%
|
| 2013 | 2,756 | 116 | 2,872 | 3.62%
|
| 2014 | 3,172 | 32 | 3,204 | 11.56%
|
| 2015 | 3,292 | 1,182 | 4,474 | 39.64%
|
| 2016 | 3,456 | 1,260 | 4,716 | 5.41%
|
| 2017 | 3,483 | 1,224 | 4,707 | 0.19%
|
Cargo movements
| Year | Domestic (in kg) | International (in kg) | Total (in kg) | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 487,250 | 1,671,107 | 2,158,357 |
|
| 2003 | 546,811 | 2,482,738 | 3,029,549 | 40.36%
|
| 2004 | 906,908 | 1,938,637 | 2,845,545 | 6.07%
|
| 2005 | 1,370,561 | 956,243 | 2,326,804 | 18.23%
|
| 2006 | 1,012,878 | 1,787,887 | 2,800,765 | 20.37%
|
| 2007 | 1,967,914 | 893,085 | 2,860,999 | 2.15%
|
| 2008 | 2,011,807 | 456,985 | 2,468,792 | 13.71%
|
| 2009 | 2,244,994 | 108,338 | 2,353,332 | 4.68%
|
| 2010 | 2,519,297 | 42,930 | 2,562,227 | 8.88%
|
| 2011 | 18,565,134 | 189 | 18,565,323 | 624.58%
|
| 2012 | 2,698,932 | 2,380 | 2,701,312 | 85.45%
|
| 2013 | 2,623,496 | 75,130 | 2,698,626 | 0.10%
|
| 2014 | 2,528,669 | 23,470 | 2,552,139 | 5.43%
|
| 2015 | 2,844,889 | 70,196 | 2,915,085 | 14.22%
|
| 2016 | 3,143,780 | 121,424 | 3,265,204 | 12.01%
|
| 2017 | 2,945,989 | 118,143 | 3,064,132 | 6.16%
|
See also
- Louis Edward Curdes
- 3d Fighter Squadron (Commando), an American air unit based in Laoag during World War II
- 353d Special Operations Group, formerly known as 3d Air Commando Group, another air unit based in Laoag during World War II
References
This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency
- ^ a b Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (23 July 2018). "Yearly Passenger, Cargo and Aircraft Movements of all airports in the Philippines 1997-2017". Republic of the Philippines - Freedom of Information Portal. Retrieved 13 August 2018.
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 8 April 2009.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) Laoag Airport - Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines - ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 30 October 2013.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) National Airports - Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines - ^ "Pacific Wrecks - Laoag Airfield (Gabu)". Pacific Wrecks. 22 May 2017. Retrieved 3 June 2017.
- ^ "353 Special Operations Group (AFSOC)". Air Force Historical Research Agency. United States Air Force. 24 November 2010. Retrieved 29 January 2018.
- ^ China Eastern Airlines destinations
External links
- Laoag International Airport
- Template:WAD
- Current weather for RPLI at NOAA/NWS
- Airport information for LAO / RPLI at Great Circle Mapper. Source: DAFIF (effective October 2006).
- Accident history for LAO / RPLI at Aviation Safety Network
- [1]
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