The new airport in Silay City will open on January 17, 2008 even without the President, Bacolod Rep. Monico Puentevella said yesterday.

He said President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo wants the airport opened and only to be inaugurated by her when she has the time. He said the new airport will operate in January with or without the President because she does not want the public to wait.

Director Edgar Mangalili, head of the Department of Transportation and Communications airport special projects, earlier, said the P4.3 billion New Bacolod-Silay Airport is expected to begin operations by Christmas.

He said, however, the opening date will depend on the availability of the President for the inauguration.

The new airport has a runway length of 2,000 meters and will be able to accommodate Airbus 330 planes that carry more than 300 passengers.

Mangalili said flight tests at the new airport have been completed and one of the requirements for its opening is the international publication of all of the data about the new airport, including location and coordinates.

This is still being undertaken by the Air Transportation Office, he said.

Puentevella said the airport has to be opened on January 17 because, based on the international aviation rule, they will need 57 days to inform the aviation world that there is a new airport that will be opened.

He said the access roads leading to the airport are expected to be completed by December.

Puentevella said he has introduced in Congress an Act Creating the Civil Aviation Authority. He said the bill was only passed on second reading Wednesday.

This is a legislative requirement being requested for many years now by the Federal Aviation Authority of America, Puentevella said. He said the bill will modernize the aviation industry or ATO.

Meanwhile, Puentevella said he has been invited to go to with the President to London to talk with the British contractors about all the flyovers done during the Arroyo administration.

“As far as I know it (the construction of the flyover in Bacolod City ) has been suspended because of technical problems in the project in Iloilo ,” he said.*CGS

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