NAIA Terminal 3 Goes International

After a few years of wait, was about 6 years, NAIA 3 (Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3) had successfully operated its domestic and or local flight as also participated by local airline carriers like Air Philippines, Philippine Airline, and Cebu Pacific Airlines, last February 2008.

Just yesterday, the officials of the said airport they’ll be opening up slots for international flights. This will able to use the latest installed ficilities offered by NAIA Terminal 3.

As said by the president of the Philippines, Gloria Arroyo, that this is the proof of the governments’ resolve and determination to move forward.

Defensor said Cebu Pacific assured him that by Aug. 8, it would operate one or two international flights out of the terminal and slowly increase the flights until the NAIA 3 can fully operate for international flights by February next year.

The transfer of the two airlines, particularly Air Philippines, was a bigger test for the facility since it entailed the activation of the terminal’s long-unused aerobridge machines.

It was learned that Air Philippines’ flights will use Boeing B737 aircraft that will load and unload passengers via the aerobridge to get into the terminal’s arrival area.

The final partial opening of NAIA-3 this week comes after a couple of failed “soft openings” set by MIAA in 2006 and 2007 after government’s payment of a P3-billion downpayment to the builder of the terminal, the Philippine International Air Terminals Co. (Piatco) in 2006 as expropriation of the facility.

But yet, there still some things to be done and reformed since the FAA (Federal Aviation Authority) had downgraded the Philippines from a Category I to a Category II on its compliance with international aviation safety standards, citing some deficiencies in the ATO’s manpower and systems that prevent it from properly auditing local aviation entities.

The said downgrade could prevent or limit some slots on some international flights like in United States.