Laoag International Airport

Sangalubongan a Pagpatayaban ti Laoag
Paliparang Pandaigdig ng Laoag
The airport's terminal building
Summary
Airport typePublic
Owner/OperatorCivil Aviation Authority of the Philippines
ServesIlocos Norte
LocationLaoag
Time zonePHT (UTC+08:00)
Elevation AMSL8 m / 25 ft
Coordinates18°10′41″N 120°31′55″E / 18.17806°N 120.53194°E / 18.17806; 120.53194
Map
LAO/RPLI is located in Luzon
LAO/RPLI
LAO/RPLI
LAO/RPLI is located in Philippines
LAO/RPLI
LAO/RPLI
Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
01/19 2,784 9,134 Concrete
Statistics (2022)
Passengers78,229
Increase 1,201.65%
Aircraft movements1,106
Decrease 69.43%
Cargo (in kg)2,035,551
Increase 949.16%
Source: CAAP[1]

Laoag International Airport (Ilocano: Sangalubongan a Pagpatayaban ti Laoag, Filipino: Paliparang Pandaigdig ng Laoag; IATA: LAO, ICAO: RPLI) is an airport serving the general area of Laoag, the capital city of the province of Ilocos Norte in the Philippines. It is the only airport in Ilocos Norte and is the northernmost international airport in the Philippines.

It has one 2,784-meter runway[2] and is designated as a secondary/alternate international 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.[3]

History

Early history

The land on which the airport sits today is located near the Ilocos Norte sand dunes at the mouth of the Padsan River. During the American colonial period, a military airfield located in the northern part of Luzon became imperative. Laoag, the most populated settlement at the time was chosen as the site. It became known as Gabu Airfield.[4]

World War II

During the initial invasion of the Japanese in the Philippines in December 1941, Gabu Airfield was captured and subsequently used it. During the Luzon campaign to retake the islands from the Japanese, Major Simeon Valdez led a raid on the airfield, burning the headquarters and setting fire to a fuel dump. Similar attacks follow in the succeeding days until its abandonment on February 15, 1945, when it was abandoned due to Commonwealth military and guerrilla raids. It was then recaptured on February 27, 1945.

By April 1945 the airfield was again operational hosting fighter and transport aircraft.[4] Colonel Arvid E. Olson, Jr. became the Base Commander and assumed all its administrative functions. The airfield became a staging area for flights and air missions against Japanese forces in Northern Luzon by April and became an important refueling point for planes en route to Okinawa[5] and an even more important emergency and rescue base for planes returning from Formosa and China.

Contemporary history

After the war, the airfield was converted into a civilian airport. It mostly catered to domestic flights from Manila and international flights from nearby countries of China, Hong Kong and Singapore and as far as Honolulu, Hawaii.

In 2003, the airport is an epicenter of concern for authorities during the 2002–2004 SARS outbreak during which it continued to receive flights from China and Singapore, two of the most affected countries.

The airport became one of the stops of the Breitling DC-3 World Tour held in 2017. The aircraft, a Douglas DC-3 with the registration number HB-IRJ landed for refueling in April as part of a round-the-world flight to celebrate the plane's 77th birthday.

The airport was also where 4 FA-50 light fighter aircraft were stored during the testing of Israeli radars on Paredes Air Station in Pasuquin, Ilocos Norte. There are plans to store FA-50s on the airport as a warning squadron for any disaster/threat to the northern part of the Philippines.

The terminal building's ceiling and floor were damaged by the onslaught of Typhoon Doksuri (Egay) in Northern Luzon in July 2023.

Structure

Runway

The airport currently has a single 2,784-meter (9,134 ft) with 45 meters (148 ft) of width. The runway runs at a direction of 01°/19°. It is equipped with runway lights but not an instrument landing system, limiting operations during severe weather. Since March 2022, the airport can accommodate wide-body aircraft such as the Airbus A330.[6]

Terminal

A single terminal building serves both passenger and cargo traffic. As an international airport, it houses immigration desks for screening of arriving international passengers. It is also equipped with a carousel baggage at the reclaim area for passengers with checked-in items.

The terminal previously had a combined capacity of 140 international and domestic passengers. It has since been expanded in 2021 to accommodate 200 international and 240 domestic passengers.[7]

Airlines and destinations

AirlinesDestinations
Cebu Pacific Manila[8]
PAL Express Cebu, Manila

Statistics

Data from Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP).[1] An em dash (—) is used if data from CAAP is not available.

Year Passenger movements Aircraft movements Cargo movements (in kg)
DomesticInternationalTotal % change DomesticInternationalTotal % change DomesticInternationalTotal % change
2002 35,766149,995185,761Steady2,3841,7964,180Steady487,2501,671,1072,158,357Steady
2003 32,79366,89499,687Decrease 46.343,3781,3824,760Increase 13.88546,8112,482,7383,029,549Increase 40.36
2004 43,43591,434134,869Increase 35.292,4441,4463,890Decrease 18.28906,9081,938,6372,845,545Decrease 6.07
2005 52,13167,331119,462Decrease 11.421,6581,6603,318Decrease 14.701,370,561956,2432,326,804Decrease 18.23
2006 55,67773,180128,857Increase 7.861,3441,8143,158Decrease 4.821,012,8781,787,8872,800,765Increase 20.37
2007 96,44446,162142,606Increase 10.671,8445422,386Decrease 24.451,967,914893,0852,860,999Increase 2.15
2008 117,64638,673156,319Increase 9.622,7243943,118Increase 30.682,011,807456,9852,468,792Decrease 13.71
2009 125,08710,386135,473Decrease 13.343,0021883,190Increase 2.312,244,994108,3382,353,332Decrease 4.68
2010 147,88329,456177,339Increase 30.901,2312121,443Decrease 54.762,519,29742,9302,562,227Increase 8.88
2011 144,0732,606146,679Decrease 17.299531521,105Decrease 23.4218,565,13418918,565,323Increase 624.58
2012 180,0977,951188,048Increase 28.202,912682,980Increase 169.682,698,9322,3802,701,312Decrease 85.45
2013 232,03410,982243,016Increase 29.232,7561162,872Decrease 3.622,623,49675,1302,698,626Decrease 0.10
2014 193,2373,200196,437Decrease 19.173,172323,204Increase 11.562,528,66923,4702,552,139Decrease 5.43
2015 175,52929,021204,550Increase 4.133,2921,1824,474Increase 39.642,844,88970,1962,915,085Increase 14.22
2016 188,66415,492204,156Decrease 0.193,4561,2604,716Increase 5.413,143,780121,4243,265,204Increase 12.01
2017 146,96014,059161,019Decrease 21.133,4831,2244,707Decrease 0.192,945,989118,1433,064,132Decrease 6.16
2018 150,2141,594151,808Decrease 5.723,3711,5154,886Increase 3.803,277,17211,5443,288,716Increase 7.33
2019 143,054143,054Decrease 5.779,5791,25010,829Increase 121.633,103,9393,103,939Decrease 5.62
2020 35,78035,780Decrease 74.992,8779863,863Decrease 64.33849,802849,802Decrease 72.62
2021 6,0102976,307Decrease 82.373,6183,618Decrease 6.34156,90437,113194,017Decrease 77.17
2022 78,22978,229Increase 1,201.651,1061,106Decrease 69.432,035,5512,035,551Increase 949.16

Accidents and incidents

See also

References

Public Domain This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency

  1. 1 2 "Aircraft, Passenger, and Cargo Movements". Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
  2. "CAAP - Airports - Laoag Int'l Airport". Archived from the original on April 8, 2009. Laoag Airport - Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines
  3. "CAAP Official Website - About Us". Archived from the original on October 30, 2013. National Airports - Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines
  4. 1 2 "Pacific Wrecks - Laoag Airfield (Gabu)". Pacific Wrecks. May 22, 2017. Retrieved June 3, 2017.
  5. "353 Special Operations Group (AFSOC)". Air Force Historical Research Agency. United States Air Force. November 24, 2010. Retrieved January 29, 2018.
  6. Adriano, Leilanie (March 14, 2022). "Laoag airport ready to welcome bigger aircraft". Philippine News Agency. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
  7. Adriano, Leilanie (July 9, 2021). "Bigger, better Laoag International Airport". Philippine News Agency. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
  8. "Cebu Pacific revives Manila-Laoag route". Inquirer.net. Retrieved July 29, 2023.
  9. "Vietjet plane with 214 people aboard lands safely in Laoag after technical problem". Inquirer.net. Retrieved July 29, 2023.
  10. "Aircraft diversion for technical check". VietJet Air. Retrieved July 29, 2023.


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