Sangley Point Airport
Sangley Point Airport Paliparan ng Punta Sangley | |||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | Public / Military | ||||||||||
| Owner | Government of the Philippines | ||||||||||
| Operator | Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines | ||||||||||
| Serves | Calabarzon and Greater Manila Area | ||||||||||
| Location | Sangley Point, Cavite City, Philippines | ||||||||||
| Opened | 15 February 2020 | ||||||||||
| Time zone | PHT (UTC+08:00) | ||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 8 ft / 2 m | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 14°29′28.74″N 120°53′37.99″E / 14.4913167°N 120.8938861°E | ||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||
.svg)  SGL/RPLS Location in the Philippines | |||||||||||
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| Runways | |||||||||||
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| Statistics (2019) | |||||||||||
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Sangley Point Airport (Chavacano: Aeropuerto de Punta Sangley; Filipino: Paliparan ng Punta Sangley; IATA: SGL, ICAO: RPLS), also referred to as Cavite Airport, is a domestic airport in the Philippines, which is primarily intended to serve general aviation and turbo-propped airliners in the general vicinity of South Luzon and the Greater Manila Area. The airport is located at Sangley Point in the city of Cavite. The airport site will be adjacent to Danilo Atienza Air Base and will be served with either P2P buses or a ferry from SM Mall of Asia.
Sangley Point Airport was inaugurated on February 15, 2020 by President Rodrigo Duterte.[1] A dry run of its operations was conducted in November 2019.
It is the fourth commercial airport to serve the Greater Manila Area, complementing and helping to decongest its neighboring Ninoy Aquino International Airport.
Proposal
In 2013, the All-Asia Resources and Reclamation Corporation (ARRC) — a venture headed by tycoon Henry Sy — commissioned Danish construction firm Rambøll Group A.S. to conduct a feasibility study for the reclamation of 50 hectares off Sangley Point and the development of an airport with two runways and a terminal capable of handling 50 million passengers annually in place of the current air base.[2] This was part of the so-called "Philippines Global Gateway" project proposed by the ARRC to the Philippine government in February 2016.[3] The entire ARRC project involves the construction of an airport and seaport facility, as well as an industrial complex (ecozone), on land reclaimed from Manila Bay off Sangley Point;[3] it is estimated to cost US$50 billion, involving among other things the reclamation of a total of 2,500 hectares of land[4] and the construction of either an underwater tunnel to the SM Mall of Asia complex in Pasay or an extension of the Manila-Cavite Expressway to connect the project to Metro Manila.[5]
In December 2016, the ARRC also proposed to the Duterte administration a plan to develop the existing Danilo Atienza Air Base and its 2.4 km long runway into a facility for low-cost carriers and general aviation "while waiting for the new airport."[5] This proposal involves the construction of a ₱3.3-billion airport terminal.[5] The air base's proposed conversion into a civil airport, if realized under this plan, is expected to reduce air traffic movements at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport by 20%.[5]
Construction
In June 2019, amid increasing congestion and flight delays of NAIA, President Rodrigo Duterte ordered the transfer of domestic and general aviation operations to Sangley. The DOTr had said it was just awaiting the construction of a passenger terminal building, hangars, a new tower, night operations equipment, and asphalt overlay of its existing 2,300-meter runway. The President directed the operations in Sangley Point to start immediately and specifically gave a November deadline of the same year.[6][7][8]
By October 27 of the same year, Sangley had its operational dry run, in which Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade called "a success". The same day also welcomed its first arrival, a Cebgo Cargo turboprop plane.
Airlines and destinations
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Cargo
| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| Alphaland Aviation | Charter: Balesin |
| Cebgo Cargo | Zamboanga |
Controversy
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Initially, Cavite Gov. Remulla had given the President the final say on the Sangley Point project, before rejecting calls to cancel the project, and then personally vouching for China Communications Construction Company - CCCC's “sincere desire to invest and construct a world-class premier gateway to our beloved country.” The President said very plainly that “we need investors from China” to complete “Build Build Build” and other flagship projects. At least for all of the dredging and reclamation projects, CCCC will have the appropriate work experience to do a great job. Just consume all these statements with the knowledge that the development banking community has been well-aware of CCCC's due diligence "problems" for many years, and that none of its recent activity is a surprise to anyone who is dealing with CCCC.
President Duterte faced backlash for not considering to cancel projects featuring Chinese state-owned firms blacklisted by the US for involvement in China's illegal island-building and militarization of the West Philippine Sea, President Duterte instead reaffirmed that the projects would push through regardless of the involvement of China Communications Construction Company (CCCC).
See also
- Clark International Airport
- Ninoy Aquino International Airport
- New Manila International Airport
- List of airports in the Philippines
References
- ^ https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2020/02/16/1993480/duterte-inaugurates-sangley-airport-project-cavite
- ^ Esplanada, Jerry E. (5 August 2013). "European team studying Cavite airport project bullish on PH". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved 7 May 2017.
- ^ a b Camus, Miguel R. (15 February 2017). "DOTr reviews San Miguel's P700B Bulacan airport". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved 8 May 2017.
- ^ Amojelar, Darwin G. (30 October 2016). "Sy also eyes new airport". Manila Standard. Retrieved 8 May 2017.
- ^ a b c d Dela Paz, Chrisee (12 December 2016). "Tieng, Sy group optimistic Sangley airport proposal will be approved". Rappler. Retrieved 8 May 2017.
- ^ "Sto. Niño devotees endure long walk to show faith | The Freeman". The Philippine Star.
- ^ "Sangley Point proposed to be converted into P1.3-trillion Philippine Global Gateway". March 30, 2017.
- ^ Ranada, Pia (June 11, 2019). "Duterte orders Sangley airport operations 'to start immediately'". Rappler.