Saturday, June 2, 2012

Two Airports

MANILA, Philippines - While government is waiting for a suitable time to transfer to Clark, a former Civil Aeronautics Board director has forwarded proposals to speed up the process and thereby find immediate solution to the airplane congestion currently experienced at the premier airport. Renato V. Diaz, President and CEO of Investment and Capital Corporation, has an out-of-the-box solution: give full operational status to the Diosdado Macapagal International Airport (DMIA) to cater to Northern Luzon passengers, while turn the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) into a domestic airport. Diaz made the proposal during a media forum, where he said a transfer could be immediately undertaken, while waiting for the construction of the high-speed rail connecting Clark and NAIA 3, which could take at least ten years. The NAIA is now hobbled by congestions, registering 29.7 million passengers in 2011. It is estimated to hit 30 million this year, according to Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) General Manager Jose Angel Honrado. To draw international carriers to Clark, Diaz said the all international airlines should be told that the DMIA does not charge the 3 percent common carriers tax and the 2.5 percent gross income tax. Both taxes are levied at the NAIA, which is the why KLM and other European airlines severed their direct connections to Europe. "Clark is a freeport zone, and KLM and other carriers who have left the country could be persuaded to resume their Manila-Europe connection if they are given incentives not to pay the total 5.2 percent taxes and other form of taxes," Diaz said. He added that even the cost of gasoline and kerosene, the main fuel of jetplanes, are priced lower in Clark compared to the rest of the country. The former Nueva Ecija congressman said that since vehicular traffic is the main stumbling block of travelers going to the NAIA, all passengers from Quezon City, Navotas, and nearby areas should be directed to proceed to Clark. Passengers from the NAIA, on the other hand, could be transported by shuttle buses police escorts, going through Villamor Air Base, exit to C-5, and take Eastwood Ave., Libis, Kalayaan, on to the Quezon Memorial Circle down to the end of Mindanao Avenue. From there, the buses can take the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) and be at the DMIA in about an hour. He said the MIAA, with R8 billion at its disposal, can procure the motorcycles, provide gasoline, and allowances for the escort cops. He said this is only temporary until the proposed link connecting the South Luzon Expressway by a 17-kilomer expressway to the NLEX is completed in about two years. Passengers in Metro Manila and the southern regions would continue to fly out of the NAIA. Those from Mindanao and the Visayas bound for abroad could take the local domestic carriers, such as those flying out of General Santos, Davao, and Zamboanga to go direct to Clark. Those coming from Legaspi and the Bicol region could be served by the Southern Luzon International Airport (SLIA) in Daraga, Albay, to fly to Clark for abroad. ....Read Yahoo! News on your mobile. Click here!....@yahooph on Twitter, become a fan on Facebook ..... Share0EmailPrint.....How do you feel about this article