TACLOBAN CITY – The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines will lift the shortened flight schedules at the Daniel Z. Romualdez airport within this week after it completed the repairs being done on the runway two months ahead of schedule.
Danilo Abareta, CAAP Area VIII Manager, said the asphalt overlay on the runway was completed on Sunday while the calibration precision approach light indicator on Monday evening, 3 June.
"We hope to lift the Notice the Airmen (NOTAM) tomorrow," Abareta said during the 'Kapihan sa Bagong Pilipinas' on Tuesday, 4 June.
"If we can file the NOTAM by tomorrow then we can go back to our regular schedule which starts from 4:30 in the morning until 8:30 in the evening. We will no longer wait for August," Abareta said.
CAAP Area VIII issued NOTAM on April 24, 2024 limiting the operational hours of DZR Airport to 12 hours – from 6:00 AM to 6:00 PM – starting May 2 to August 2, 2024.
The shortened operational hours affected a total of 12 flights to and from Manila daily, operated by three airlines – Philippine Airlines, Cebu Pacific and Air Philippines.
Danilo Abareta, CAAP Area VIII Manager, said the asphalt overlay on the runway was completed on Sunday while the calibration precision approach light indicator on Monday evening, 3 June.
"We hope to lift the Notice the Airmen (NOTAM) tomorrow," Abareta said during the 'Kapihan sa Bagong Pilipinas' on Tuesday, 4 June.
"If we can file the NOTAM by tomorrow then we can go back to our regular schedule which starts from 4:30 in the morning until 8:30 in the evening. We will no longer wait for August," Abareta said.
CAAP Area VIII issued NOTAM on April 24, 2024 limiting the operational hours of DZR Airport to 12 hours – from 6:00 AM to 6:00 PM – starting May 2 to August 2, 2024.
The shortened operational hours affected a total of 12 flights to and from Manila daily, operated by three airlines – Philippine Airlines, Cebu Pacific and Air Philippines.
The shortened operation hours at the DZR Airport and the cancellation of flights in the recent weeks drove prices of airfare for the Tacloban-Manila route by as much as three times its normal price.
Abareta said that presently DZR Airport averages 19 flights a day plying Tacloban to Manila and Tacloban to Cebu. When the NOTAM is lifted, Abareta said the flights will go back to the usual 31 flights a day.
Abareta cited the anticipated influx of passengers for Tacloban City in time for the city fiesta on June 30 and the good weather condition as among the reasons for the fast completion of the project.
"The original three-months schedule that we set also considered the unpredictable weather conditions in the region. Fortunately, we had good weather and the airlines cooperated without any delay so we finished the asphalt overlay ahead of schedule," he added.
The repair works at the DZR airport started in December 2023. The Asphalt Overlay of Runway and Airport Perimeter Road project, implemented by the Department of Transportation, had a total cost of P421 million.
The project involves site development of runway 18 and 36, repair of runway potholes, asphalting of runway shoulder, construction of northwest shore protection (206 m), construction of airport road (2,708 m), and construction of CAAP administrative building, including site development, among others.
The whole project is set to be completed in January 2025.(CJ/EVR/jmm)
Abareta said that presently DZR Airport averages 19 flights a day plying Tacloban to Manila and Tacloban to Cebu. When the NOTAM is lifted, Abareta said the flights will go back to the usual 31 flights a day.
Abareta cited the anticipated influx of passengers for Tacloban City in time for the city fiesta on June 30 and the good weather condition as among the reasons for the fast completion of the project.
"The original three-months schedule that we set also considered the unpredictable weather conditions in the region. Fortunately, we had good weather and the airlines cooperated without any delay so we finished the asphalt overlay ahead of schedule," he added.
The repair works at the DZR airport started in December 2023. The Asphalt Overlay of Runway and Airport Perimeter Road project, implemented by the Department of Transportation, had a total cost of P421 million.
The project involves site development of runway 18 and 36, repair of runway potholes, asphalting of runway shoulder, construction of northwest shore protection (206 m), construction of airport road (2,708 m), and construction of CAAP administrative building, including site development, among others.
The whole project is set to be completed in January 2025.(CJ/EVR/jmm)
