This article needs additional citations for verification .(August 2019) |
Legazpi Airport Paliparan ng Legazpi Palayugan nin Legazpi | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Summary | |||||||||||
Airport type | Defunct | ||||||||||
Owner/Operator | Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines | ||||||||||
Serves | |||||||||||
Location | Barangay Cruzada, Legazpi, Albay | ||||||||||
Opened | 1946[1] | ||||||||||
Closed | October 7, 2021 | ||||||||||
Elevation AMSL | 20 m / 66 ft | ||||||||||
Coordinates | 13°9′25″N123°44′46″E / 13.15694°N 123.74611°E | ||||||||||
Website | legazpiairport | ||||||||||
Map | |||||||||||
Runways | |||||||||||
|
Legazpi Airport( IATA : LGP, ICAO : RPLP) was a major airport in the Bicol Region, served the vicinity of Legazpi, the capital city of Albay in the Philippines.
Prior to its closure, the airport was designated as a Class 1 principal domestic Airport by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines, a body of the Department of Transportation that is responsible for the operations of not only this airport but also of all other public airports in the Philippines except the major international airports. [2]
The airport was replaced by the new and larger Bicol International Airport in 2021. [3]
This section needs additional citations for verification .(August 2022) |
The site of the former Legazpi Airport used to be the Sanborn Field. This former US airfield opened in the early 1900s. During World War II, the airport was occupied by Japanese forces from 1941 until the airport was liberated by the United States Army in 1945. [4] Commercial operations started the following year. [1]
The jet age came to Legazpi in the late 1960s and by the 1970s Philippine Airlines (PAL) introduced regular service to/from Manila using British Aircraft Corporation's BAC 1-11s. In the late 1980s PAL introduced Boeing 737-300s. YS-11s provided airlink to Mactan, Cebu, Masbate, and Virac. When PAL phased out the YS-11s and the short-lived Shorts SD-360 'Sunriser,' Fokker 50s replaced them. Before the debilitating labor strike in 1998 which caused PAL to temporarily cease operation, Legazpi Airport served as the airline's hub in Bicol, serving Manila, Cebu, Masbate, Virac, even Catarman in Samar. Today, it serves local clients and transient passengers from southern Camarines Sur and the province of Sorsogon.
Aside from PAL, Filipinas Orient Airways and Air Manila International served the airport before 1972, the declaration of martial law in the Philippines. Through the years, other airlines came and went: Air Philippines for some time served Legazpi with YS-11s and 737-200s. Asian Spirit served Pili for flights to/from Manila and Cebu and has since ceased operations with six million pesos in collectibles from local (Naga or Pili) franchisees. Asian Spirit also planned to introduce flights to Virac and Masbate before its rebranding as Zest Airways. At present, Aboitiz cargo regularly calls on Legazpi. South East Asian Airlines, using the 19-seat LET-410. plies Cebu-Legazpi-Cebu Mondays and Fridays.
When Pope John Paul II visited the Philippines in 1981, his itinerary included the city of Legazpi. The papal plane was a chartered PAL Boeing 727 tri-jet. President Ferdinand Marcos arrived in his own jet; First Lady Imelda and the then-Minister of Defense, Juan Ponce Enrile, arrived with their own retinues on separate jets.
In the mid-1990s, a Harrier jumpjet of the US Marines made an emergency landing here. Nearby Alicia Hotel housed the unexpected guests for days while the aircraft was repaired. During that time, day and night, the airport site became an aviation museum of sorts with curious on-lookers taking a glimpse at the heavily guarded fighter plane, exactly the same piece used in the Schwarzenegger film True Lies .
In February 2000, during a lull in nearby Mayon Volcano's eruption (which suspended regular commercial service), a chartered Boeing 727 from Guam landed, bringing relief goods for evacuees.
On September 15, 2001, coming home from her state visit to Japan, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo flew to Legazpi non-stop from Tokyo using a chartered PAL Airbus A320, highlighting the capability of the airport to handle international air traffic. On November 26, 2003, a Cebu Pacific DC-9-32 brought delegates to the Philippine Institute of Certified Public Accountants (PICPA) convention on a charter flight from Cebu.
In 2015, the passenger terminal building was refurbished and expanded under a ₱40 million refurbishment program funded by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines. [5]
Although operating as sunrise-sunset (SR-SS) due to lack of an instrument landing system (ILS), the airport can handle night landings and take-off but only on prior notice. [5] The fact that the airfield does not have an ILS system leads to flights being delayed and/or cancelled because the airfield cannot operate in inclement weather without an ILS system. [6] Evening flights began in 2016 after upgrades to the airport facilities, with Cebu Pacific being the first airline to operate night flights. [7]
As early as 1996, plans were laid to construct an international airport in the neighboring municipality of Daraga, which would replace Legazpi Airport. Construction of the larger Bicol International Airport was slated to open by 2014 but was repeatedly delayed. [3]
The airport had its last flight on October 7, 2021, and closed on the same day. [3] After the closure, the airport site is planned to be converted into a business district. [8]
The airport had a single runway which was 2,280 meters (7,480 ft) long and 36 meters (118 ft) wide. [5] The runway was longer than those of the now-defunct Bacolod City Domestic Airport (1,958 m × 30 m [6,424 ft × 98 ft]) and Mandurriao Airport in Iloilo City (2,100 m × 43 m [6,890 ft × 141 ft]). It runs in a direction of 06/24.
The passenger terminal building at Legazpi Airport had the capacity of more than 500 passengers. After its refurbishment in 2015, separate arrival and pre-departure areas for domestic and international chartered flights were added to the terminal building, including office space for the Bureau of Immigration, customs and quarantine, and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency.
The airport could handle medium-sized civilian jets and military aircraft. [5] Its apron has the capacity of three aircraft.
Airlines | Destinations |
---|---|
Cebgo | Cebu, Manila |
Cebu Pacific | Manila |
PAL Express | Cebu, [9] Manila |
Philippine Airlines (PAL) is the flag carrier of the Philippines. Headquartered at the PNB Financial Center in Pasay, the airline was founded in 1941 and is the oldest operating commercial airline in Asia.
Ninoy Aquino International Airport, originally known as Manila International Airport (MIA), is the main international airport serving Metro Manila in the Philippines. Located between the cities of Pasay and Parañaque, about 7 kilometers (4.3 mi) south of Manila proper and southwest of Makati, it is the main gateway for travelers to the Philippines and serves as a hub for PAL Express, and Philippine Airlines. It is also the main operating base for AirSWIFT, Cebgo, Cebu Pacific, and Philippines AirAsia.
Cebu Air, Inc., operating as Cebu Pacific, is a Philippine low-cost airline based at Pasay in Metro Manila. Founded in 1988, it is Asia's first low-cost airline. It offers scheduled flights to both domestic and international destinations. The airline operates flights from five bases in Cebu, Clark, Davao, Iloilo, and its largest base in Manila.
Francisco Bangoy International Airport, also commonly known as Davao International Airport, is the main airport serving Davao City and Davao Region in the Philippines. It is the busiest airport on the island of Mindanao and the third busiest in the Philippines in 2022.
Zest Airways, Inc., operated as AirAsia Zest, was a Filipino low-cost airline based at Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Pasay, Metro Manila in the Philippines. It operated scheduled domestic and international tourist services, mainly feeder services linking Manila and Cebu with 24 domestic destinations in support of the trunk route operations of other airlines.
Zamboanga International Airport is the main airport serving Zamboanga City in the Philippines. Located on a 270-hectare (670-acre) site in Barangay Canelar, Zamboanga City, the airport is Mindanao's third-busiest airport after Francisco Bangoy International Airport in Davao City and Laguindingan Airport in Laguindingan, Misamis Oriental.
Dipolog Airport is the main airport serving the general area of Dipolog, the capital city of Zamboanga del Norte, in the Philippines. The airport is one of the busiest in Mindanao, especially considering its classification. It is classified as a Class 1 principal by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP), a body of the Department of Transportation (DOTr) responsible for the operations of airports in the Philippines except the major international ones.
Godofredo P. Ramos Airport, also known as Caticlan Airport and recently, Boracay Airport by its developer Trans Aire, is an airport serving the general area of the municipality of Malay, located in the province of Aklan in the Philippines. It is one of the two gateways to Boracay, the other being Kalibo International Airport in Kalibo. The airport is classified as a Class 1 principal airport by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines.
General Santos International Airport, also known as Tambler Airport, is an alternate international airport located in the city of General Santos, Philippines serving the greater area of Soccsksargen. Situated in Fatima, General Santos, it is a large airport on the island of Mindanao and is officially classified as an international airport by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP), a government bureau which is responsible for the management and operations of General Santos International Airport and all other airports in the country except regular international airports.
Puerto Princesa International Airport is an airport serving the general area of Puerto Princesa, located in the province of Palawan in the Philippines. It is classified as an international airport by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines.
Roxas Airport is a domestic airport serving the general area of Roxas City and the province of Capiz, in the Philippines. The airport is classified as a Class 1 principal airport, by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines, a body of the Department of Transportation that is responsible for the operations of most minor and domestic airports serving various parts of the country.
Daniel Z. Romualdez Airport, also known as Tacloban City Airport, is an airport serving the general area of Tacloban, a highly urbanized city in the Leyte island of the Philippines. It is the main gateway from Manila and Cebu to Eastern Visayas. It is classified as a Class 1 principal airport by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines. In 2022, Daniel Z. Romualdez Airport served 1.48 million passengers, making it the seventh-busiest in the country.
Moises R. Espinosa Airport, also known as Masbate Airport, is the airport serving the general area of Masbate City, located in the province of Masbate in the Philippines. It is named for Moises R. Espinosa Sr., a former Representative of Masbate who was assassinated at the airport on March 17, 1989.
Bicol International Airport, also referred by some sources as Southern Luzon International Airport, is an airport serving the vicinity of Legazpi, the capital city of Albay and the regional center of Bicol Region, in the Philippines.
Labo Airport, also known as Ozamiz Airport, is an airport serving the general area of the city of Ozamiz in the Philippines. It is the only airport in the province of Misamis Occidental. The airport is classified as a community airport by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines, a body of the Department of Transportation that is responsible for the operations of not only this airport but also of all other airports in the Philippines except the major international airports. It is one of only two community airports in the Philippines with commercial operations, but one of the busiest in Mindanao in terms of aircraft movement and passenger traffic.
Air Philippines Corporation, operating as PAL Express and formerly branded as Air Philippines and Airphil Express, is a wholly-owned subsidiary airline of Philippine Airlines. It is PAL's regional brand, with services from its hubs in Manila, Clark, Cebu, and Davao.
Bacolod–Silay International Airport, is an airport serving the general area of Metro Bacolod, located in the Western Visayas region of the Philippines.
Mactan–Cebu International Airport is an international airport serving Cebu and serves as the main gateway to the Central Visayas region in the Philippines. Located on a 797-hectare (1,970-acre) site in Lapu-Lapu City on Mactan, it is the second busiest airport in the Philippines. Opened on April 27, 1966, the airport serves as a hub for Philippine Airlines, and as an operating base for Cebu Pacific and Philippines AirAsia.
Philippine Airlines (PAL) is the flag carrier of the Philippines, operating from its base at Ninoy Aquino International Airport. PAL is the oldest airline in Asia operating under its original name, having been founded in 1941.