Mactan-Cebu International Airport will install 20 electronic immigration gates—12 for arrivals and eight for departures—beginning in September, with operations targeted for December, according to MCIAA General Manager Julius Neri Jr.
The e-gates aim to shorten immigration queues and create a faster, seamless passenger experience, though deployment will require systems integration, trial periods, and software adjustments before full implementation.
MCIAA also implemented the Cebu Connect system, reducing domestic connection times to 35 minutes and international-domestic transfers to 60 minutes, though it currently only supports passengers connecting on the same airline.
MACTAN-CEBU International Airport is preparing to install 20 electronic immigration gates beginning in September, with the system targeted to be operational by December.
Twelve e-gates are planned for arrivals and eight for departures, said Julius Neri Jr., general manager and chief executive officer of the Mactan-Cebu International Airport Authority (MCIAA), during SunStar Cebu’s Beyond the Headlines.
The project is intended to shorten immigration queues, one of the most visible bottlenecks for international passengers.
Neri said that when he visits major international airports, he looks at two key measures: the time passengers spend waiting in immigration lines and the time it takes to complete processing once they reach an immigration officer.
For Cebu, he said the benchmark is the contactless experience at airports such as those in Hong Kong and Dubai, where passengers can use automated passport and facial-recognition systems instead of conventional immigration counters.
“We are almost there…this will allow the immigration process to be faster and more seamless,” Neri said. “We are hoping that by December we will have that feature.”
Neri said deploying the e-gates will require systems integration and is expected to involve trial periods, software adjustments and possible temporary limits on who can use the gates while the system is being calibrated.
“This installation is not an event, it’s a process because it will require software to talk to each other,” Neri said. “So, hopefully it will go without a hitch, but you never know. But we’re hoping for the best.”
Cebu Connect
The e-gates are one part of MCIAA’s effort to use technology and redesigned processes to improve passenger movement.
Another initiative already in place is Cebu Connect, a transfer system designed to shorten minimum connection times between flights.
The minimum connection time for domestic-to-domestic transfers has been reduced from 60 minutes to 35 minutes, while international-to-domestic and domestic-to-international transfers have been cut from 90 minutes to 60 minutes.
Neri said they also established an additional passenger-processing route that allows connecting travelers to go through immigration, customs and security without exiting the pre-departure area.
The setup required coordination among the Bureau of Quarantine, Bureau of Customs, Bureau of Immigration and Office for Transportation Security, as well as additional personnel to support the process.
Airline limitation
Neri said Cebu Connect still has a technological limitation because it currently works only for passengers connecting on flights operated by the same airline.
“That is the next step we will try to put in place, although that will be more challenging because sometimes different airlines have different software. You have to get the software to communicate,” Neri said.
Some of MCIAA’s technology is already being used in areas passengers may not immediately associate with airport modernization.
Neri cited the baggage-monitoring system at the carousel, where screens show passengers their luggage being transferred from baggage carts onto the carousel.
He said passenger experience is the airport’s second priority after safety.
Over the next five years, Neri said they want the airport to make greater use of technology, including possible improvements in check-in, baggage processing and baggage claim. / DPC