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TERMINAL
3 of the
Ninoy Aquino International
Airport (Naia) will initially cater to domestic flights
before it gradually shifts to become an international
airport, the Manila International Airport Authority (Miaa)
informed the Joint Foreign Chambers of Commerce (JFC)
the other day.
In his
speech delivered before the JFC, Alfonso Cusi, Miaa
general manager, said the facility will be opened at the
“soonest possible time” after all the safety and
structural concerns of the mothballed facility have been
addressed.
“We will
address all the basic, pressing and most glaring
life-safety concerns such as the collapsed ceiling
through a more comprehensive repair and strengthening
program,” said Cusi.
And
after identifying the operability of certain sectors of
the terminal, “we shall pursue a deliberate strategy of
partial or phased opening, starting with domestic flight
operations and subsequently shifting to international
flight operations on a selective basis,” added Cusi.
Right
now, Cusi said, Miaa is drafting strategic policies and
is in discussions with local airlines in exhausting all
possible options for the realization of actual flight
operations at Terminal 3 for a safer, more orderly and
more convenient air travel for passengers.
Cusi
said management has been undertaking the necessary
research, planning and policy studies that relate to the
basic issues of opening new passenger terminals,
expanding terminal facilities and reorganizing airline
operations within the Naia complex.
Naia
currently handles 90 percent of international traffic
and 75 percent of all international and domestic traffic
combined.
These
strategic policy studies being pursued at Miaa include:
runway capacity, airline mix and accommodation and
terminal usage and optimization, among others.
“It is
crucial to address, through Miaa, or its expanded
management framework focused on meeting both ongoing and
strategic operations, a national aviation policy and
regulatory framework that is more progressive,
coordinated and resourced. We are continually laying
the framework for a new quality regime with the end
view of promoting employee commitment, integrity and
efficiency and higher service levels at all aspects of
airport operations befitting its status as the country’s
premier gateway,” added Cusi.
In
April, Miaa published an invitation to bid for the
terminal completion works. The bid was declared a
failure because two of the eight interested firms did
not pass the required eligibility checks. As a result,
Miaa engineers undertook some tests, assessments and
inspections preparatory to system testing and
commissioning.
Of the
33 equipment systems at Terminal 3 covering basic
building systems like the electrical, air conditioning,
people-mover and fire-protection systems and airport
special systems like the baggage-handling system,
passenger-loading bridges and security screening
system, the Miaa engineering group has inspected and
assessed 23 systems.
The
group found that there were missing software, system
keys, wires and cables; there were obsolete components;
worn-out devices; and that there were also systems
designs that were already inappropriate for present
requirements, particularly for the structured cabling
system.
Cusi
said that the Miaa engineering group will work on the
following: completion of the inspection of other
systems; coordination with manufacturer’s representative
for cost estimates to complete; replacement of system
components; procurement of needed components and
software; prioritization of systems to be completed for
a possible soft opening within the next few months; and
identification of viable alternatives in case a
permanent solution would take a considerable time to
complete. |
