DOTr orders all airport runways extended to 2,100 meters

Department of Transportation (DOTr) Secretary Banoy Lopez has ordered the extension of all airport runways to meet the minimum standard of 2,100 meters.

In a statement on Thursday, Lopez said that the order was made in an effort to mitigate the rising cost of domestic airfare amid talks of expensive local tourism.

Earlier, the Air Carriers Association of the Philippines (ACAP) noted that high local airfares may be caused by structural cost pressures such as short runways, which require smaller aircraft with limited seats.

"Ang polisiya po natin sa DOTr, pagdating sa mga bagong airports na itatayo, lahat dapat ng runway must be 2,100 meters minimum para ready sila for bigger aircrafts pagdating ng araw,” Lopez shared.

(Our policy in the DOTr when it comes to airports that will be established is that all runways must be 2,100 meters minimum so they are ready for bigger aircraft when the day comes.)

Both DOTr and the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) also pushed for night-rating for red-eye flights to give passengers more options, which can help make airfare cheaper.

“Meron po tayong ginagawa ngayon na programa, ‘yung night-rating. Kumbaga pinapailawan natin. May night-rating capability ang ating mga airports. Inuuna natin ang ating mga tourist airports. Kasi kapag night-rated ang isang paliparan, pwede na 'hong bumiyahe ang ating mga kababayan sa gabi, madaling araw, at ‘yun po sinasabi natin usually na red-eye flight at sa practice po ay mas mura ang pamasahe diyan,” he said.

(We are now conducting a program called night-rating. We’ll install lights so our airports have night-rating capability. We will prioritize tourist airports. If an airport is night-rated, our countrymen can now travel at night and early morning, and that is what we usually call the red-eye flight, and those fares are usually cheaper in practice.)

Meanwhile, Lopez said that they are now looking into alternative travel options for domestic tourist destinations such as Siargao.

They are also considering the lowering of terminal fees for airports under CAAP. —VAL, GMA Integrated News