Davao City bumps estimate of loss due to 2-day airport closure to P250M

The two-day closure of the Francisco Bangoy International Airport in Davao City after a Cebu Pacific aircraft skidded off the runway Sunday night resulted in losses of almost P250 million for the city, according to the Davao City Chamber of Commerce and Industry Inc.

"We called up DCIPC [Davao City Investment Promotion Center] and we gave them our numbers.They gathered data and estimated losses of P200 [million] to P250 million," said DCCCII president Daniel Lim.

In an email sent by the DCCCII, the DCIPC said estimated losses since June 2 reached P247 million, broken down into the following: P3 million from cancelled hotel bookings, P500,000 from airport concessionaires, P1.5 million from transport service providers (including vans, taxi, tourist buses and car rental), P50 million from allied industries, P2 million from airport terminal revenues, and P190 million from stalled cargo.

Based on data from the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP), the airport accommodates at least 20 flights with more than 4,000 passengers daily from local carriers alone.

On Tuesday, Lim said Davao had been losing at least P5 million per day since the closure of the airport.

"The P5 million per day was an initial estimate based on the data we have," he said.

The airport reopened on Tuesday.

GMA News Online is still trying to reach DCIPC for comment. — BM, GMA News