Senator says DMCI’s Taguig condo obstructs flight path to NAIA

Senator Joseph Victor Ejercito on Wednesday scored property developer DMCI Homes as he received complaints that its condominium project in Taguig City has been an "obstruction" along the flight path of aircraft bound for the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).

At the presentation of the 2017 budget of the Department of Transportation (DOTr) and its attached agencies before the Senate Committee on Finance, Ejercito said he received complaints that the Cypress Towers, located along C-5 Road, was “on the path of incoming aircraft if you use [Runway] 24.”

“Before it’s just a photobomber in Rizal and now, it’s an obstruction of the flight path. I think it’s developed by the DMCI also. Hindi n'yo alam?” Ejercito told transportation officials.

The DMCI is also behind the construction of the 46-storey Torre de Manila condominium that mars the vista or visual corridors of the Rizal Monument in Rizal Park.

The Supreme Court (SC) has since ordered the construction of the controversial property stopped. Last week, the DMCI filed its fourth urgent motion to lift the restraining order, arguing that they are risking a loss of P250 million.

'Millions lost'

The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP), for its part, admitted that the agency approved the height of the condominium.

Capt. Manuel Tamayo, deputy director general for administration of CAAP, said however that the property’s height was not an issue because they adjusted the Minimum Decision Altitude, an aviation term used when deciding when to push through or abort the plane’s landing.

“Right now, it’s not an issue anymore kasi tinaas yung limits niya...I’m not sure how high the building is. But I just want to assure the riding public that safe yung approach even if it’s non-precision approach,” Tamayo said.

The non-precision approach is being used at the NAIA after the Instrument Landing System (ILS), a precision approach, was struck by lightning in 2015.

Ejercito said the Cypress Towers and the defective ILS, which has yet to be repaired due to the late delivery of parts from the supplier, caused frequent flight diversions at the airport.

The use of ILS, Tamayo explained, was “more efficient” because it was the “precision approach” allowing aircrafts to be separated by only three miles compared to the non-precision approach of five miles.

“Before when our ILS was operating, the Minimum Decision Altitude was 300 meters. Now, because of the condominium, the altitude was raised to 900 meters,” Senator Ejercito said.

“There is no danger in this because 900 meters is the pilots’ safety adjustment for landing. But the repercussion is that we lose millions, if not billions, whenever our pilots have a hard time estimating their landing, resulting to flight diversions to Clark,” the senator stressed. —ALG, GMA News