Naia blues

Usually and endlessly blamed for congestion on the airport runway, which in turn causes sometimes hours-long delays in the takeoff and landing of flights, Manila International Airport Authority General Manager Angel “Bodet” Honrado vigorously rejects any blame for this travel annoyance.

“It is not our fault,” Honrado told the Bulong Pulungan sa Sofitel forum yesterday. “What people are saying about the causes of air traffic congestion is very far from the truth.”

He instead pointed to the airlines, saying these are paying the consequences for “not keeping to their schedules.”

In 2010-2011, Honrado said, airport and air traffic authorities became increasingly aware of the problem of “overcapacity” in the airport. In 2012, he met with airline representatives precisely to discuss the problem. The runway, he explained, can safely handle a maximum of 40 “events” (takeoffs and landings) an hour, and at that time, the runway was already “beyond capacity.”

In those meetings, he said, it was agreed that, for instance, all training flights using the Naia runway would transfer to airports outside of the capital; private airplanes would be given limited access; and “food runs” would keep to a strict schedule that would mean their using the runway early in the morning and after peak hours.

But problems arise when airlines don’t strictly adhere to their scheduled time slots, especially in the early hours of the day (starting at midnight), Honrado explained. Delays in takeoffs or landings that take place during the day mean further delays down the road. “It’s not just a domino effect,” he said in an attempt at humor, “it’s also a blackjack effect.”

But when asked which airline is “most guilty,” he refused to reply, saying only that the culprit operates “out of Terminal 3.”

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With just over a year left to go in his term at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, what is Honrado most proud of during his stint?

He beamed brightly. “First is the opening of Terminal 3 to international travel. Remember, the terminal project began during the Ramos administration, but it was only during the P-Noy administration that the terminal was opened to international travel.”

Second, he said, is the upgrading of the 40-plus-year-old Terminal 1, whose rehabilitation (and clean bathrooms) is just about complete after years of public criticism and scathing Internet reviews.

And one other thing, he added. He is proud of his part in having the airport terminal fee integrated into the price of airline tickets, thereby saving passengers (except those who bought their tickets abroad) from having to queue an additional time. (Lines at immigration and customs counters are beyond his control, he said.)

As for what he still wishes to accomplish at the airport, it goes beyond infrastructure or upgraded equipment, Honrado said. Instead, he wishes to work on the “human resources” at the Naia, to instill a work ethic in employees as well as a “spirit of service” not just among airport personnel but even among “the taxi drivers who will not exploit their passengers, especially tourists,” “those who loiter in our premises and harass visitors,” and even personnel of immigration and customs “who will stay honest and serve the government as best they can.”

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A native of Tarlac, Honrado said that if he could choose to work in and develop another airport, it would be the one in the former US air base in Clark, which he thinks already has a lot going for it.

After all, it has world-class runways that were built by the American military to carry their huge aircraft, which means it has the capacity to cater to even the bigger planes used by commercial airlines. The Clark airport, he said, also enjoys the luxury of space, with much more room for expansion compared to the Naia.

But the problem is a “chicken-and-egg” situation, he said. Few air travelers from Manila, even in areas like Quezon City which is closer to the north, are interested in travelling all the way to Clark because only a few airlines operate from there and offer only a few flights. And the reason few airlines choose to locate to Clark is precisely because of the low volume of passengers.

The answer, said Honrado, lies in a dedicated means of transportation so that passengers can travel from Manila to Clark with relative ease and speed. Several suggestions have been made: an elevated skyway reserved for Clark-Manila traffic and vice-versa, or a dedicated rail service.

But these remain still in the planning stage—or in the dreaming stage, as some would put it. But clearly, the day of reckoning is fast approaching and the government must act now if it wants to have something in place once Naia reaches saturation point.

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For Bodet Honrado, that time is beyond his horizon, since, as he pointed out with glee, he has only “one year and seven days to go” before leaving the Naia and its many problems.

He expressed the hope that what he has accomplished will be remembered as “one or two steps up a ladder” which his successor is free to take to its logical conclusion. “We just took things one step at a time,” he declared.

No doubt, travellers using the Naia—whether for the first or nth time—would have Honrado to thank for making the experience as hassle-free as humanly possible.