Iloilo International Airport

Iloilo International Airport (Filipino: Paliparang Pandaigdig ng Iloilo, Hiligaynon: Pangkalibutan nga Hulugpaan sang Iloilo) (IATA: ILO, ICAO: RPVI) is the airport serving the general area of Iloilo City, the capital city of the province of Iloilo and the regional center of the Western Visayas region in the Philippines. It opened its doors to commercial traffic on June 14, 2007 after a decade of planning and construction, replacing Mandurriao Airport in Iloilo City proper which had been in service for over seventy years. As a result, the new airport inherited its IATA and ICAO airport codes, as well as its position as the fourth-busiest airport in the Philippines, from its predecessor. It is the first airport in both Western Visayas and the island of Panay to be built to international standards, and one of the four airports in the region planned to be an international gateway.

The airport is located 19 kilometers (12 mi) northwest of Iloilo City on a 188-hectare (460-acre) site in Barangay Duyan-Duyan, split between the municipalities of Cabatuan, where the airport proper is located, and Santa Barbara, where the airport entrance and access road are located. The airport complex consists of a single runway, various administrative and maintenance buildings, waste sorting and water treatment facilities, a power generating station, a cargo terminal and a main passenger terminal. Its location on the Tomas Confesor Highway, a major highway transversing the island, makes the airport accessible from all parts of Iloilo and Panay by road, while its proximity to the currently defunct Panay Railways network could potentially link the airport to the rest of Panay by rail.

Built in slightly over 30 months, Iloilo International Airport is one of the largest airports to be constructed in the Philippines. At its inauguration, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo remarked that the airport was the most beautiful and modern in the country and called it a symbol of both political will and economic maturity.

Read more about Iloilo International Airport:  Airlines and Destinations

Famous quotes containing the word airport:

    It was like taking a beloved person to the airport and returning to an empty house. I miss the people. I miss the world.
    Susan Sontag (b. 1933)