Andrew Acquaah Harrison, chief executive advisor of GMR Megawide, (left photo, right and above photo, left) shows tourism stakeholders led by Rowena Montecillo, Department of Tourism regional director (above, second from right), and Ma. Teresa Chan, Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry President(above, right), the new X-ray machines(left photo) and the self-service kiosk.(CDN/TONEE DESPOJO)
P-Noy in T2 groundbreaking not confirmed
Mactan Cebu International Airport is ready for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meetings here starting August, an official of concession-holder GMR Megawide Cebu Airport Corp. said.
Andrew Acquaah Harrison, chief executive advisor of GMR Megawide, said representatives of the organizing committee inspected the airport terminal two days ago.
They were “very happy with the current renovations and improvements” being made, Harrison said.
“They were not asking for anything except for the APEC lounge,” he said during yesterday’s walk-through of the terminal with the media.
The APEC lounge will be completed by August, before the meetings begin.
GMR Megawide is also set to break ground for Terminal 2 (T2) on June 29. President Benigno S.C. Aquino III has been invited to grace the event, but Malacañang has not confirmed as of yesterday.
PPP PROJECT
Construction of the second terminal is part of the P17.5-billion upgrading of MCIA, the first public-private partnership (PPP) contract awarded in the country. The new terminal is targeted to open in three years.
Construction has been delayed by five months because the project site is still occupied by the Philippine Air Force. Clearing of the site started only on June 2, after the Air Force agreed to move its base operations terminal to the Most Important Person (MIP) Building.
“We want the President to be there (during the groundbreaking ceremony) because the PPP is a cornerstone of the President’s economic reform,” Harrison said.
The new terminal will increase the airport’s capacity to 12.5 million travelers. The existing terminal was designed for 4.5 million passengers, but currently serves more than 7 million passengers yearly.
Harrison said the renovation and expansion of the terminal is aimed at drawing more tourists to Cebu.
“If tourism does not grow, the airport cannot succeed. Our approach is really to support the tourism industry by ensuring that we provide an airport that meets your aspirations and expectations, and at the same time facilitate different types of passengers,” he said.
GMR-Megawide is also working to increase the number of international airlines serving Cebu, he added.
Renovation of the existing terminal is expected to be completed within 12 months.
FIRST PHASE
The first phase includes restroom upgrades and toilet modifications, additional seats, putting up supplementary signage in Japanese and Korean, replacement of all baggage conveyor lines and systems, and the construction of common gates.
An in-line baggage screening or automated baggage screening, a project that was originally part of the Phase 4 project, was bumped up to Phase 1.
Harrison said work on this will begin in a month and will be completed about a year from now. “In June 2016, there will be no more checks as you enter the terminal. All checks will be done by automated x-rays behind check-in. It’s one less process,” he said.
Several improvements are already in place, such as the new Centralized Security Screening area and three Common Use Self-Service (CUSS) Check-in System kiosks, which allow passengers to check in on their own.
At present, only Cebu Pacific and Cathay Pacific are using the kiosks.
The airport also now has electronic flight displays above the check-in counters as well as new computers and passport readers purchased by the Bureau of Immigration.
A four-bed medical clinic, with doctors and nurses operating 24/7, has been opened. An air-conditioned area has been allocated for the “meeters and greeters” in the domestic arrival area.
Flight information display systems will be installed all over the terminal. People can also access the information through the airport’s website.
At present, the airport is working with Globe Telecom, Inc. to install by the end of July a service that sends text message alerts when a flight lands. The service will be made accessible to people meeting the passengers and hotels that want flight updates, Harrison said.
By August, a boarding pass validation system with automated gates called VeriPax and a baggage reconciliation system will be installed.
Mactan Airport will be the first airport in the Philippines certified for mobile boarding pass check-in application, Harrison said.