Wednesday, August 27, 2008 Safety at Mactan airport continues to attract international airlines
SEVERAL international airlines are interested to put up direct flights from Cebu to other countries because not one incident involving terrorism had been recorded since the Mactan airport was upgraded to international standards in 1991.
“The focus of security is really (on) the highest type of threat, which (endangers) passengers and aircraft,” said Danilo Augusto Francia, Mactan Cebu International Airport Authority (MCIAA) general manager.
This November, Francia said, security inspectors and experts from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) of the United States and the International Civil Aviation Organization (Icao) will evaluate and review the security system at the Mactan Cebu International Airport.
Icao sets the standard for international aviation rules and regulations.
Department of Tourism 7 Director Patria Aurora Roa, also a member of the MCIAA board, said the security system at the local airport conforms to international standards.
“We try, as much as possible, to keep up with the required standards to maintain our category (of safety) so that there will be more airlines that will land in Mactan. Otherwise, we cannot invite them to come,” Roa said.
She said that all the requirements to make the Mactan-Cebu International Airport safe have been addressed, no matter how costly these are. But she assured that the purchase of security equipment has been made “without putting the Authority (MCIAA) in debt.”
Airfield
Francia also explained that despite the hassle involved, airport security personnel have to inspect every piece of luggage and all passengers to prevent explosives from being brought on an aircraft.
Meanwhile, Francia said the Mactan-Cebu International Airport airfield—which includes the runway, taxiway and apron—is not yet fully utilized unlike the international airport in Manila.
He said the Mactan airport’s 3.3 kilometer-long runway has the same length and size with that of Manila airport.
“(But) the Mactan airport runway is still good now up to seven or eight years. We can still add more if we transfer some of the airplanes doing the touch-and-go here like the general aviation,” he said.
He said the MCIAA is not worried about the runway and taxiway. He added that the MCIAA still has more than enough time to study the need for another runway or an extension of the existing infrastructure.
“We are still within a long safety period by which we can start working on the next runway,” Francia said. (EOB)
