Airport needs Nayong Pilipino for expansion

The Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) is planning to acquire the 46–hectare Nayong Pilipino tourism complex in Pasay City for the extension of the aircraft taxiway and expansion of the cargo facility of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport’s (Naia) Terminal 2, also known as the “Centennial Terminal.”

This was disclosed to the Inquirer by Joseph Agustin, chief of the MIAA’s ground operations and safety division, who called the Nayong Pilipino acquisition a “future priority project” of the agency.

The MIAA, which is attached to the Department of Transportation and Communications, “will most likely get that property either in 2012 or 2013,” said Agustin.

Pagcor property

“We’re eyeing the expropriation and development of the area in three years’ time. This will be done through negotiations with (the state-run Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.),” which owns the property, he noted.

Established in 1969, Nayong Pilipino was the first theme park of its kind not only in the Philippines but also in Southeast Asia.

It featured, among others, miniature versions and replicas of the country’s top tourist attractions, like the Mayon Volcano in Albay, the Banaue Rice Terraces in the Cordilleras, Vigan houses in Ilocos Sur, Chocolate Hills in Bohol, and the Magellan’s Cross in Cebu.

In 2002, the then Arroyo administration stopped the park’s operations following the conversion of nearly nine hectares of the property into a parallel taxiway and service road connecting Naia Terminals 2 and 3.

Pagcor city

Pagcor is planning to put up a new Nayong Pilipino complex—a Las Vegas- or Macau- like gaming and entertainment center—at the reclaimed area near the SM Mall of Asia on Roxas Boulevard.

Aside from extending the Terminal 2 taxiway, the MIAA also plans to “expand the Centennial Terminal and the nearby Cargo City,” according to Agustin.

Meanwhile, the MIAA is “coordinating with the Nayong Pilipino management to clean up the former tourist complex,” which is believed to be hosting bee colonies.

“There is still no confirmation that the same bees that disrupted Naia Terminal 2 operations and caused flight delays (on May 19) came from the nearby Nayong Pilipino complex. But we suspect they originated from that place because it’s not well-maintained,” said Agustin.

Bee attack

On May 19, Terminal 2 employees where stunned when bees suddenly swarmed around the control panels of at least five aerobridges at Gates 32 and 38 at around 1 p.m., preventing controllers from attaching the movable walkways to arriving airplanes.

Airport authorities immediately ordered the temporary closure of the terminal gates, saying the incident posed a danger to passengers and airport walkers.

Passengers were made to use the service stairs down the ramp to get to and off the planes that were forced to park at the tarmac.

It took more than 30 minutes to rid the operating panels of bees using smoke and vacuum cleaners.

At least two international flights and five domestic flights of Philippine Airlines were delayed due to the reported “bee invasion.”

The Bureau of Animal Quarantine had said the bees may have come from a “grassy spot or vegetation within the vicinity.”

A Terminal 2 official, on the other hand, said they were not discounting the possibility that the bees could have been smuggled by a passenger.

Bird strike deterrent

Meanwhile, the MIAA is set to install later this year at least three Long Range Acoustic Device (LRAD) units at the Naia property to address the recurring “bird strikes” that have hampered flights.

With the installation of the LRADs, which cost P7 million apiece, the MIAA is aiming for “zero bird strikes” within the 13–kilometer radius of Naia’s four terminals.

LRAD is the same US technology being used by, among others, the Joint Maritime Forces and commercial vessels in the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean to repel Somali pirates, and American troops to deter suspected terrorists and insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The LRADs are stronger, more painful to the ears and have wider coverage, according to Agustin.

At present, the MIAA uses pyrotechnics, avian alarms, amplified prerecorded bird distress calls and physical deterrents like balloons to prevent bird strikes.