Govt postpones opening of Laguindingan airport to June

The opening of the P7.8-billion Laguindingan Airport in Misamis Oriental province has been moved from April 30 to June 15 this year, the government said Tuesday. This was to avoid disrupting the passengers’ travel plans during the summer, according to the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC). “The postponement will give the airlines ample time to inform their customers of their new flight schedules at Laguindingan Airport,” the agency said in a statement. “This will lessen the possibility of disrupting travel plans and causing inconvenience to the riding public.” Northern Mindanao-based businessmen had earlier urged the government to delay the opening of the Laguindingan airport, citing the lack of navigational equipment. The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) had also received requests from airline companies to postpone the opening until after the summer peak season. In postponing the opening by a month and a half, the DOTC said it “took stock of the assessment of both CAAP and the airline companies that the Laguindingan Airport is already a safer alternative to the Lumbia Airport.” “We again listen to their inputs saying that postponing the transfer will be better for passenger convenience,” it said. Lumbia airport is also located in Misamis Oriental. The DOTC considers the Laguindingan Airport as a key infrastructure project crucial to unlocking the Cagayan de Oro-Iligan Corridor to more tourism- and agriculture-oriented activities. — KBK, GMA News