Night flights begin at Bohol-Panglao International Airport
NIGHT FLIGHTS. The Bohol-Panglao International Airport gets a navigation system that can handle night flights. File photo from the Department of Transportation
MANILA, Philippines – The Bohol-Panglao International Airport (BPIA) is now accommodating night flights after it launched an additional navigation system.
The Department of Transportation (DOTr) announced on Wednesday, September 4, that the BPIA started a 16-hour operating schedule last Sunday, September 1.
The airport now operates from 6 am to 10 pm, extended from the previous 12-hour schedule of 6 am to 6 pm.
"This is made possible through the installation, full calibration, testing and operationalization of several ground-based navigational equipment, such as distance measuring equipment, localizer antenna, ground-based radio navigational aid, and instrument landing system," said the DOTr.
"These equipment provide precise and systematic launching and landing of aircraft."
Aside from the new ground-based equipment, the BPIA also uses a satellite-based navigation system, but it has "limited capacity" at night and during weather disturbances.
"The more flights we can accommodate, the more benefits we can offer to our air passengers," said Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines Director General Jim Sydiongco.
Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade also said improvements at the BPIA would "ultimately impact on regional economic growth and development."
The BPIA, dubbed the Philippines' "first eco-friendly airport," opened in November 2018. It can accommodate up to two million passengers yearly. – Rappler.com
