CRK | Clark International Airport

[renell]

Originally Posted by GreyX

such as?

-connection Manila to Clark by rail
-connection Manila to Clark by road
among some

also some questions
-is it really required
-would it profit, rather than losing money?
-you already have an int'l terminal in NAIA, why build one in Clark.

i don't think the government is thinking about this right now. and i'm still also looking for a good rendering of this future airport in the net. that scanned pic is old

[ryanr]

Originally Posted by renell

-connection Manila to Clark by rail
-connection Manila to Clark by road
among some

also some questions
-is it really required
-would it profit, rather than losing money?
-you already have an int'l terminal in NAIA, why build one in Clark.

i don't think the government is thinking about this right now. and i'm still also looking for a good rendering of this future airport in the net. that scanned pic is old

connection Manila to clark by rail - Northrail which is currently u/c
connection Manila to Clark by road - NLEX, upgrades almost completed
(part of the reason behind these projects are to support the Clark airport and investment to flow into clark and subic)

required? Yes, possibly. NAIA is terribly congested already and is in a very crowded area.

profit? Depends. If the government and lure more investors like UPS, Fed Ex, Boeing, etc into the airport they will definitely profit. If they can make it a hub for SEA flights bound for North America then that is additional profits.

Why? Like i said, NAIA is very congested and is unsafe already. It is too close to the city and is surrounded by informal housing. NAIA has only one major runway instead of two. (it has two, but forms a cross instead of a parallel formation)

Lastly, although quite far from the center of MM, Clark is in an ideal location as it is right in the middle of Subic and Metro Manila. Subic will become an important frieght port and industrial zone. Clark is also an investment center.

[ryanr]

One more thing i would like to add, this will relieve MM from traffic congestion, pollution, overcrowding as the main airport will be out of town and Clark, Subic and the surrounding areas will grow, providing employment to the people in the area. This will lessen the inflow of people going into MM as there is an alternative area of opportunity.

[absent-minded]

great ideas, GreyX. I can agree with everything you've said there. I also agree with Renell's view that the gov't still has to work out major factors that affect this relocation.

to me, the relocation of Luzon's major int'l airport isn't really the big thing on the government's mind, but instead the move of the major airport to further push the government's plans of extending and expanding the current metropolitan area.

it is true that the current NAIA complex is awfully crowded and there is no longer any room for future expansion - this further strengthens the need for a larger area no longer available in urban Metro Manila. if we can see, many other developing/developed Asian cities have either long ago moved out or are already moving out their major int'l gateways (both sea and sky) from the capital's center. probably to help the ailing overpopulation, pollution, traffic and growth concerns - common problems found in many of our neighboring countries and obviously our own. we should also see, however, that these cities, before daring the move, were able to provide the necessary infrastructure facilities to support the transfer. I believe this plan to relocate from the overly crowded NAIA to the larger, more open DMIA is a good bid by the gov't to follow suit - even as the construction of the new terminal 3 may have hampered plans (or not, if it was intended to be put to use as an intermediary facility for before and during - maybe even after - the move). the early, well thought planning of this relocation clearly coincides with the country's Mega Manila project. BUT, the government's highly probable failure to meet the many, still-lacking infrastructure needs (which, luckily, will not happen) may ultimately cause the fall of this massive, highly potential undertaking. thankfully, a handful of these needs - such as the earlier mentioned Northrail, NLEX, Southrail and air/sea port upgrades - are already being taken up by the gov't, as are other development projects by private subsidies. sadly though, the essential link that has been separating the northern and southern parts of this promising mega city has not been thought about, much less touched on. the one vital facility that can bridge this gap is the Skyway - which has been halted for so long already. on the bright side, railways to be provided by the Southrail and mass transit systems of the LRT 6 have been planned - though, again, implementation does not always happen.

in the end, I guess it all hangs on the political will and effort of officials we elect to run our government...

[ryanr]

Exactly! Spot on, Absent...

[renell]

while you're reasoning is completely right, i still don't see an huge int'l terminal in DMIA in the near future. planning could start in the next presidency around 2005, and i reckon it could finish before 2010, if not, could be opened during the early months of the next presidency.

[ryanr]

We didnt say it would occur in the near future. We said that it will happen in the future due to our reasoning. It could happen in the year 2050 for all i care. But imo, it will happen quite soon due to the demand for a new airport and more space. Investors may need something to spark up activity in Clark and the airport should be an answer. Planning has started, but not finalized. I think it should be confirmed by the end of the next presidency and construction should start by the turn of the decade. But this will be done in phases, so do not expect a huge airport terminal to begin with. The end result is gonna be the stunning part.

[renell]

so planning has started? man i missed a big part of this discussion

i think the dates i gave are the earliest time. remember NAIA3 is still there, and whether NAIA is crowded or not, it's wasting money if you're opening a brand new airport, then build another one a year later.

[ryanr]

Supposedly... GMA already changed the name from Clark Int'l Airport to DMIA and there have been lots of proposals, planning, renderings that have gone out. I dunno if the planning stage is still on-going or if it is on hold right now.

[SunKing]

Here's the DMIA runway as seen from space (~middle right side of photo); just look at the incredible destruction brought by the lahar and by the Pinatubo (1996 photo courtesy of clarkab.com):

[rico]

wow! nice image. it's a good thing the runway was spared from the lahar.

[renell]

wow, that's a lot of lahar.

never knew it spread to the sea... interesting

[bagel]

The straight lines you see that bring the lahar to the sea are the lahar megadykes built on the fast track soon after the Pinatubo eruption. Just imagine, if they weren't there the lahar would spread further over land.

[renell]

oh right. thanks for correcting.

just how fast was this megadyke made? i've never seen a government project go fast.. lol

[Edmundtanso]

great aerial photo, thanks sunking.

since you guys mentioned the lahar going to the sea, did you guys know that pinatubo ashes made the sand around the vicinity sea very white and kiiled a lot of coral reefs?

[renell]

well you can't blame anyone for that.. guess that's just nature

[lumpia]

the thing in my mind is that if a major international airport is to be developed @ DMIA.. what about pinatubo? the next eruption? efforts to divert lahar would prob be much more costly in future than the implementation of whatever various phases DMIA and Clark have to go through (just look at the pic!!).. and with the "Mega-Manila" concept most prob becomin a reality, the movement of alot of people to the clark area would be dangerous for future generations, (pinatubo and lahar!).. i'm not a pessimist (i love the notion of a world-class international airport @ DMIA ) but the govt should draw up a detailed emergency plan if its to expand more into Clark!

[ryanr]

Awesome picture...the airport was barely spared...you can clearly see the parallel runways on that pic

@ renell and edmund, yeah its part of nature. Happens everywhere so its not our fault.

@ lumpia. At one point i was just as concerned as you. That is why i used to be against moving to Clark. Back then i wanted the new airport to go to Langly Point, as proposed by Ramos. But to think about now, Clark is a better move because it is already quite developed, and is developing quickly. The government already built megadykes as previously mentioned to divert the flow of lahar, so this basically saves Clark and DMIA. Pinatubo will probably not erupt for the next few decade if not centuries so the risk is not high. Should there be an eruption, NAIA is still there

[SunKing]

How big is Sangley Point NAS anyway? I think it'll be better suited for cargo ops since I think SGL already has berthing facilities for ships. I think it's just slightly bigger than Cubi Point NAS in Subic.

Here's a 1960's-circa aerial of Sangley Point NAS:


Cubi Point NAS:

[renell]

Langley Point is too small to be an int'l airport, best to leave it as a PAF base. and maybe you can turn NAIA into a PAF airport too, when you move to Clark.

or the int'l terminal and the PAF HQ can be both in Clark.. but that's still far to happen.