Govt eyes Subic airport reopening
CAPAS, Tarlac: The Subic Bay International Airport (SBIA) could return to operation in the second quarter of 2019 under a revival plan, Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade said on Wednesday.
“The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) is proposing for the revival of airport,” Tugade said in a briefing at the site of the proposed New Government Administrative Center in New Clark City.
The airport fell into disuse after American logistics giant Federal Express closed its Subic hub in 2009. The SBMA last year proposed to spend P300 billion to upgrade the facility on top of a P540-million appropriation.
Tugade said the government would focus on fixing aviation facilities but declined to give a cost estimate.
Senator Richard Gordon, who used to be mayor of Olongapo and later SBMA chairman, has called on the government to consider reopening SBIA in a bid to decongest Metro Manila’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).
Re-opening the Subic airport would complement the operation of nearby Clark International Airport, which is also being developed as and alternative to NAIA.
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