Bacolod City Domestic Airport

Bacolod City Domestic Airport[lower-alpha 1] (IATA: BCD, ICAO: RPVB), also known as Bacolod Airport during its operation, was an airport that served the general area of Bacolod, the capital city of Negros Occidental in the Philippines. It was one of the busiest airports in the Western Visayas region and was one of four trunkline airports, or major commercial domestic airports, in the region, the others being Mandurriao Airport in Iloilo City, Roxas Airport in Roxas and Puerto Princesa Airport in Puerto Princesa. This airport was replaced by the new Bacolod–Silay Airport, located in nearby Silay.

Bacolod City Domestic Airport

Paliparang Domestiko ng Lungsod ng Bacolod
Domestiko nga Hulugpaan sang Dakbanwa sang Bacolod
Aerial view in November 2022, fourteen years after its closure
Summary
Airport typeDefunct
Owner/OperatorAir Transportation Office
ServesBacolod
Opened1936 (1936)
ClosedJanuary 17, 2008 (2008-01-17)
Elevation AMSL8 m / 25 ft
Coordinates10°38′33.04″N 122°55′46.62″E
Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
04/22 1,956 6,416 Asphalt (closed)

It was classified as such by the Air Transportation Office, a body of the Department of Transportation that is responsible for the operations of all other airports in the Philippines except the major international airports. As of February 2007, Cebu Pacific had increased its number of flights from Manila to Bacolod. The airport surpassed the Iloilo City Mandurriao Airport in the number of arriving passengers.

The former terminal building of the airport

The airport was built by the Lopez family in 1936 to serve the Iloilo–Negros Air Express Company's flights to and from Bacolod, Iloilo and Manila. It was bought by Philippine Airlines after World War II.[1] The Bacolod City Domestic Airport ceased operations on 17 January 2008, prior to the opening of the Bacolod–Silay Airport which began operations the day after.[2] As of 2012, the airport is closed to air traffic however the terminal now serves as a ticketing office for Philippine Airlines, while the Cebu Pacific Terminal around 400m from the main terminal was made into an Aviation School for aircraft mechanics, as well as ground pilot training.

In 2016, Senator Franklin Drilon suggested to the city government of Bacolod to re-develop the whole airport grounds into a business park, following the success of converting the Mandurriao Airport in Iloilo City into a central business district.[3]

Former airlines and destinations

The destinations of Bacolod City Domestic Airport before its closure.

AirlinesDestinations
Air Philippines Cebu, Manila
Cebu Pacific Air Cebu, Manila
Philippine Airlines Manila

Incidents

On March 22, 1998, Philippine Airlines Flight 137, an Airbus A320-200 (registered as RP-C3222) overshot the runway while attempting a landing at Bacolod. There were no casualties among the passengers and crew, but three people on the ground were killed.[4]

See also

References
  1. Gomez, Carla (January 9, 2008). "Vice President to Open Airport in Silay Jan. 18". The Visayan Daily Star Electronic Edition. Archived from the original on April 12, 2008. Retrieved May 12, 2008.
  2. Gomez, Carla (January 17, 2008). "Bacolod Mayor Snubbed in Airport Inauguration?". The Visayan Daily Star Electronic Edition. Archived from the original on January 18, 2008. Retrieved January 17, 2008.
  3. Bañaga, Dominique Gabriel G. (July 8, 2016). "New Bacolod Economic Highway to be Completed by 2017 Drilon Suggests Re-Developing Old Bacolod Airport". Watchmen Daily Journal. Archived from the original on August 17, 2016. Retrieved July 10, 2016.
  4. Accident description at the Aviation Safety Network

Notes
  1. Filipino: Paliparang Domestiko ng Lungsod ng Bacolod, Hiligaynon: Domestiko nga Hulugpaan sang Dakbanwa sang Bacolod


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