RUNWAY 06 for landing, Runway 24 for takeoff.

The Caticlan Airport in Aklan, the nearest jump-off point to the world-famous Boracay island resort, is strictly implementing this policy after a passenger plane overshot its runway last week, according to the Air Transportation Office (ATO).

In a phone interview on Wednesday, airport manager Mecine Torres said Runway 06, which is near the shoreline, would be exclusive for incoming flights while Runway 24 near a hill would be for outgoing flights.

The runway is 30 m wide and 950 m long.

Torres said the measure was in line with the International Civil Aviation Organization (Icao) standards.

Despite the Icao standards, pilots had the discretion of choosing the runway to land, depending on weather conditions and volume of traffic, Torres said. But because of the recent accidents, the ATO will impose the exclusive use of designated runways.

A Zest Air plane carrying 59 passengers and crew members overshot the runway while landing at the airport on June 27. No injuries were reported, but the airport was closed the whole day until the aircraft was removed from the runway.

In January, 26 people were hurt when another Zest Air plane undershot the runway when it landed. The airport was closed for a day and a half.

The airport is one of the busiest in the country, averaging 32 incoming and 32 outgoing flights daily, Torres said. It serviced around 1,200 passengers last year. During Boracay’s peak season, starting October until summer, the airport handles 52 incoming and 52 outgoing flights , Torres said.

The safety of the airport has been a concern because of the volume of traffic relative to the size of the runway. Moreover, airlines have been operating bigger planes in their Caticlan route.

Because of the strict implementation of the designated runways, some flights have been diverted to the capital town of Kalibo, Torres said.

Plans are underway to develop the airport into an international facility.

The government, through the Department of Transportation and Communications, recently signed an agreement with Caticlan International Airport Development Corp. (CIADC) to go ahead with a P2.5-billion development project under a 25-year build-operate-transfer scheme.