The airport was nominated as a finalist for the Airport category of the 2021 Prix Versailles [it] awards[8] but lost to LaGuardia Airport Terminal B as the best new airport in 2021.[9] However, it was recognized as a laureate of Prix Versailles' 2023 list of the World's Most Beautiful Airports.[10]
On March 1, 2024, CRK bagged the Routes Asia Marketing Awards under the 5 million Passenger airport category after being recognized having handled nearly 2 million passengers in 2023, or a 160% increase.[11]
History
For information on the history of Clark Airport prior to the explosion of Mount Pinatubo in 1991 and the departure of U.S. forces from the Philippines, see Clark Air Base.
The logo of Clark International Airport used until 2019.
The United States Cavalry established Fort Stotsenberg in 1902 and later converted a portion of it into an air field, which was, in turn, renamed Clark Air Field in 1919—in honor of aviator Major Harold Melville Clark—and was used as one of the most important overseas bases during World War II.[citation needed]
In 1947, the RP-US Military Bases Agreement was signed, integrating Clark Air Field and Fort Stotsenberg into Clark Air Base but, after the eruption of Mount Pinatubo in June 1991 and the non-renewal of the military bases agreement, Clark Air Base was reverted to the Philippine government.[citation needed]
The Bases Conversion Development Act of 1992 accelerated the conversion of Clark Air Base into a Special Economic Zone, and, in 2007, the Congress of the Philippines enacted Republic Act No. 9400, which renamed the base to Clark Freeport Philippines.[citation needed] It is now segregated in two separate entities: Clark Freeport Zone, administered by the Clark Development Corporation, and the Clark Civil Aviation Complex, administered by the Clark International Airport Corporation (CIAC).
In 1993, the former Clark Air Base was reopened as the Clark Special Economic Zone (CSEZ) after the area was cleared from lahar debris from Mount Pinatubo explosion and a typhoon that followed.[citation needed] During the administration of PresidentFidel V. Ramos, it was designated to be the future primary international gateway of the Philippines and the major international airport of Metro Manila and its neighboring provinces when Ninoy Aquino International Airport in the said metropolitan area has reached full capacity and can no longer be expanded.[citation needed]
CIAC traces its origin from Republic Act No. 7227, otherwise known as the "Bases Conversion and Development Act of 1992", which authorized the conversion of several military reservations, including the former Clark Air Base, into sustainable economic zones. Jurisdiction over the corporation shifted from the Bases Conversion Development Authority (BCDA) and the Clark Development Corporation (CDC) since its formal incorporation with the SEC in 1995.[citation needed]
The airport opened for commercial operations on June 16, 1996.[3]
On April 4, 2003, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo renamed the airport to Diosdado Macapagal International Airport (DMIA), in memory of her father, former President Diosdado Macapagal, and ordered the Clark International Airport Corporation (CIAC) in February 2007 to fund the US$1.7 billion (₱76.5 billion) expansion of DMIA and the approval of a US$2 million (₱90 million) study plan financed by the Korean International Cooperation Agency. The first stage of Clark Airport's expansion program, a ₱130 million terminal expansion, was completed in January 2008 to accommodate more than 2 million passengers annually.[12]
The airport again used the Clark International Airport name in February 2012,[15] but the original passenger terminal continued to bear Macapagal's name until 2014.
On February 28, 2017, President Rodrigo Duterte issued Executive Order No. 14, reverting CIAC as a subsidiary of the BCDA, but with the Department of Transportation (DOTr) maintaining supervision and operational control of the airport.[16]
Expansion and future development
Four new terminals are expected to be completed and all will be fully operational by 2025. Upon completion, these four terminals will boost Clark's passenger capacity to more than 110 million annually. The airport is also being groomed to become one of the country's first "aerotropolis," which is a community that features a world-class airport and surrounded by business clusters and residential developments.[17] The project involves the operations and maintenance of the existing and the proposed new passenger terminal buildings on the airport with a 25-year concession period. The ₱12.55-billion project involves the construction of a new passenger terminal building with a design capacity of twelve million passengers per annum.
North Luzon Airport Consortium (NLAC), which is a consortium of JG Summit Holdings, Filinvest Development Corporation, Philippine Airport Ground Support Solutions Inc. and Changi Airports Philippines Pte. Ltd. (which is a subsidiary of Changi Airports International Pte. Ltd, which is itself a subsidiary of Changi Airport Group, the operator of Singapore Changi Airport) won the open bid by the BCDA to take over the operations and maintenance of the airport.[18] On January 25, 2019, NLAC signed the 25-year contract for the operations and maintenance for the airport.[19] On August 16, Clark International Airport's operations and maintenance were officially handed over to the winning bid (now renamed as Luzon International Premier Airport Development (LIPAD) Corporation in a ceremony held at the new terminal building along with the unveiling of its new logo.[1][2]
The new passenger terminal building was completed in September 2020.[20] Trial flights to and from the new terminal were conducted in December 2021,[21] and the terminal opened for commercial operations on May 2, 2022.[22] All flights moved to the new terminal on the day of its opening.[23] Following the opening of the new terminal, the old terminal was decommissioned.[24] The new terminal was officially opened by President Bongbong Marcos during a grand opening event on September 28.[25]
Geographical location
Clark International Airport is located within the Clark Freeport Zone in the island of Luzon, approximately 98 kilometers (61 mi) from Manila in the south and 163 kilometers (101 mi) from Baguio. The airport lies in between Mount Pinatubo to the west and Mount Arayat to the east.
The airport site is inside the Clark Freeport Zone's Civil Aviation Complex which occupies 2,367 hectares (5,850 acres) and directly linked to the Subic–Clark–Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX) which is connected to the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) providing a direct link to Metro Manila.
The airport has a 82,600-square-meter (889,000 sq ft) four-level passenger terminal building which replaced the original terminal in 2022.[22] Designed by Populous and Casas+Architects and constructed by Megawide Construction Corporation and GMR Infrastructure,[26][27] the terminal has a total floor area of 110,000 square meters (1,200,000 sq ft) and a design capacity of twelve million passengers per annum.[24]
The ground level holds the baggage claim and arrival halls, while the second floor holds the transfer facilities, immigration facilities for arriving international passengers, and 18 jet bridges. Aside from the jet bridges, there are remote gates at the apron. The third level houses the check-in counters and pre-departure areas including gate lounges, while the fourth level houses food and beverage areas and commercially important person lounges.[28]
Views of the departure hall of the former passenger terminal in 2013.
The original terminal was expanded for $3 million (PH₱130 million) to accommodate 1 million passengers annually. The expansion project was inaugurated by President Arroyo in April 2008 to serve the growing passenger volume due to the entry of foreign and local budget carriers at the airport.[29]
The first phase of the expansion of the terminal started in April 2010 at a cost of $12 million (PH₱550 million), saw a second story, arrival and departure lounges, and two aerobridges added to the terminal building. The expansion boosted the airport's capacity to 2.5 million annually.[30]
The passenger terminal was expanded again in 2013 at a cost of $9.6 million (PH₱417 million), increasing the capacity of the terminal from 2.5 million to 4.2 million passengers per annum. The expansion increased the size of the passenger terminal building from 11,439 square meters (123,130 sq ft) to 19,799 square meters (213,110 sq ft). It added 21 new check-in counters, increasing the total number of counters from 13 to 34. Five arrival counters and 12 departures counters were also constructed. The expanded terminal has eight entry points and three customs stations. The modernized terminal started operations in May 2013.[31]
Runways
Clark International Airport used to have two 3,200-meter (10,500 ft) parallel runways. Since the runways are closely spaced, the secondary runway (02L/20R) has been decommissioned and is no longer in use. The new terminal occupies the end that was formerly Runway 20R, while a new maintenance hangar is currently being constructed on the stopway of Runway 02L.[32]
The primary runway (Runway 02R/20L) has a length of 3,200 meters (10,500 ft) and a width of 60 meters (200 ft). It is equipped with various navigational aids and lighting facilities, and it has a Category 1 rating for precision approach.[33]
The former secondary runway (Runway 02L/20R) has the same length as the primary runway but is only 45 meters (148 ft) wide, 15 meters (49 ft) narrower than the primary runway. Unlike the primary runway, the secondary runway was used for visual flight rules (VFR) only. The secondary runway was decommissioned in 2017.[33]
Air traffic control tower
In 2020, the Clark International Airport Corporation (CIAC) announced plans to construct the tallest air traffic control tower in the Philippines which will stand around 54 meters (177 ft) in height.[34] The tower is projected to be completed by December 2021.[35][needs update]
Second hangar
On March 12, 2024, Elmar Lutter, Lufthansa Technik Philippines President announced the groundbreaking project of the P8.4-billion ($150 million) hangar facility at Clark International Airport. Its planned second hangar was unveiled during the Philippine officials' Berlin, Germany visit, led by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr and Alfredo E. Pascual.[36]
^ ab"2007 Annual Report"(PDF). Clark International Airport Official Website. Clark International Airport Corporation. p. 16. Archived from the original(PDF) on June 2, 2015. Retrieved June 17, 2016.
^"Clark Air Base". Philippine Air Force. Archived from the original on January 22, 2013. Retrieved December 31, 2012. Though the air facility principally handled civilian air traffic (it was planned to replace Ninoy Aquino International Airport as Metro Manila's primary airport), the Philippine Air Force maintained a presence there, and part of it was still known as Clark Air Base.
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