Vigan Airport

Vigan Airport

Pagtayaban ti Vigan
Paliparan ng Vigan
Summary
Airport typePublic
OperatorCivil Aviation Authority of the Philippines
ServesVigan
LocationBarangay Mindoro, Vigan, Ilocos Sur, Philippines
Elevation AMSL10.3 m / 34 ft
Coordinates17°33′17″N 120°21′22″E / 17.55472°N 120.35611°E / 17.55472; 120.35611
Map
RPUQ is located in Philippines
RPUQ
RPUQ
Location in the Philippines
Map
Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
02/20 1,045 3,429 Asphalt
Statistics (2008)
Passengers47,548
Aircraft movements25,244
Statistics from the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines.[1]

Vigan Airport[a] (ICAO: RPUQ), also known as Mindoro Airport, is an airport serving the general area of Vigan, the capital of the province of Ilocos Sur, located in the province of Ilocos Sur in the Philippines. The airport is the only one located in Ilocos Sur, at Barangay Mindoro (and not on the island of Mindoro).

It is classified as a community airport by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines, the part of the Department of Transportation that is responsible for the operations of all airports in the Philippines except the major international airports.

Previously, the airport was considered by the city government as a "sleeping asset", since no revenue was generated from its operations. Plans were made by the city to expand and modernize the airport, in part to lighten the burden of traveling to Vigan from Manila and other cities and towns by bus, as well as to develop the city's burgeoning tourism industry.[2]

On March 19, 2009, Interisland Airlines began flying between the airport and Manila[3] but was discontinued after a few months due to low demand.

In February 2017, the airport re-opened for commercial flights after eight years of private use. Platinum Skies, controlled by former Ilocos Sur governor Chavit Singson, began flights between Vigan and Manila on February 17, 2017 and between Vigan and Basco starting April 2017.[4]

In around 2020s, ABS-CBN's program, FPJ's Ang Probinsyano shot some scenes in the Airport

On May 25, 2022, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) and the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) inaugurated the completed Vigan Airport development projects includes the improved the Passenger Terminal Building, including the arrival and pre-departure areas and the construction of the airport’s Administrative Building, a powerhouse, and the provision of runaway features. This increased the capacity of Vigan Airport’s previous capacity of only 40 to 150 passengers.[5]

Airlines and destinations

AirlinesDestinations
Platinum SkiesBasco, Manila

Notes

  1. ^ Ilocano: Pagtayaban ti Vigan, Filipino: Paliparan ng Vigan

References

  1. ^ "Philippine Aircraft, Passenger and Cargo Statistics 2001-2008". March 3, 2009. Archived from the original on September 11, 2011. Retrieved April 21, 2009.
  2. ^ "Transportation". Heritage City of Vigan. City Government of Vigan. Archived from the original on March 28, 2008. Retrieved November 26, 2017.
  3. ^ Inter Island Airlines to operate scheduled flights from Vigan City[permanent dead link‍], Alternative Airlines, February 28, 2009
  4. ^ Realgo, Bryan (15 February 2017). "Vigan airport reopens for commercial flights". ABS-CBN News. Retrieved 16 February 2017.
  5. ^ "Revitalized Vigan Airport to welcome more domestic, foreign tourists". PTV News. 26 May 2022. Retrieved 17 June 2022.