Francisco Bangoy International Airport Tugpahanang Pangkalibutanon sa Francisco Bangoy Paliparang Pandaigdig ng Francisco Bangoy
The airport in January 2018 as viewed from across the runway
IATA: DVO ICAO: RPMD WMO: 98753
Summary
Airport type	Public
Owner/Operator	Davao International Airport Authority
Serves	Metro Davao
Location	Sasa, Buhangin, Davao City, Philippines
Opened	August 25, 1958; 65 years ago (1958-08-25)
Hub for	PAL Express Philippine Airlines
Operating base for	Cebu Pacific
Time zone	PHT (UTC+08:00)
Elevation AMSL	29 m / 96 ft
Coordinates	07°07′31″N 125°38′45″E / 7.12528°N 125.64583°E / 7.12528; 125.64583
Maps
DVO/RPMD Show map of Mindanao DVO/RPMD Show map of Philippines
Runways
Direction Length Surface m ft 05/23 3,000 9,843 Asphalt concrete
Statistics (2022)
Passengers 2,769,546 382.58% Aircraft movements 19,181 204.46% Cargo (in kg) 36,100,892 18.13%
Source: CAAP[1]

Francisco Bangoy International Airport (Cebuano: Tugpahanang Pangkalibutanon sa Francisco Bangoy, Filipino: Paliparang Pandaigdig ng Francisco Bangoy; IATA: DVO, ICAO: RPMD), also commonly known as Davao International Airport, is the main airport serving Davao City and Davao Region in the Philippines. It is the busiest airport on the island of Mindanao and the third busiest in the Philippines in 2022.

History

Early history

The site of the airport began operations in the 1940s as Sasa Landing Field with a donation of land in barangay Sasa, located in Buhangin district of Davao City, by Don Francisco Bangoy, the then-current patriarch of an influential family that founded and settled in Davao alongside Don Jose Uyanguren. At the time it began operation, the airport merely consisted of a 1,200-meter (3,900 ft) unpaved grass runway and quonset huts serving as terminal buildings. At the time, and throughout much of the 1940s and the early 1950s, both Philippine Air Lines and the Philippine Air Force provided air service to the city.^[2]

As a civil aviation airport

The Davao (Sasa) Airport was opened for civil aviation on August 25, 1958.^[3] It initially consisted of a new 1,500-meter (4,900 ft) long by 30-meter (98 ft) wide concrete runway and a 200-meter (660 ft) long by 60-meter (200 ft) wide apron. The grass airstrip was later converted as a taxiway for general aviation.^[4]

By 1959, the complex consisted of a small control tower and several low-rise buildings. On June 19, 1960, Republic Act No. 2762 was enacted which renamed the airport to Francisco Bangoy Airport in honor of the late Don Francisco Bangoy.^[5] Right of way and access to the terminal buildings and the airport were improved through further donation of land by Paciano Bangoy, Francisco's son, during the latter stages of Paciano's gubernatorial term. In 1970, the runway was extended and widened to 2,000 meters (6,600 ft) and 36 meters (118 ft), respectively, while the apron was widened to 100 meters (330 ft). Five years later, the runway was further extended and widened to 2,500 meters (8,200 ft) and to the current 45 meters (148 ft), respectively.^[4]

A new terminal designed by Filipino architect Leandro Locsin, with a capacity of one million passengers, started construction in 1976 and was completed in 1980. The project, in addition to runway expansions, was funded during the term of then-Congressman Manuel Garcia, whose congressional district covers the airport perimeter.^[2] Airbus A300 operations by Philippine Airlines started on September 1, 1989, marking the first widebody service to the city. The first scheduled international passenger service started on April 29, 1992, with the inauguration of Bouraq Airlines flights to Manado, Indonesia.^[4] After the launch of scheduled international flights to Davao, regular flights to Malaysia and Singapore were also commenced by Malaysia Airlines in 1996 and SilkAir in 1997, respectively.^[6][7]

Expansion

Rapid growth at the airport precipitated the construction of a ₱15 million interim international terminal beside the airport's then-existing terminal,^[2] and then eventually a new, larger terminal building that would consolidate the two existing terminals. In planning since 1992, construction began in 2000 and was subsequently inaugurated on December 2, 2003, with a capacity double that of the old airport terminal. The construction of the new ₱2.7 billion building was funded by both the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the European Investment Bank (EIB).^[2] The modernization and upgrading of the airport facilities aim to make Davao as a hub for tourism and foreign investment in the region. Development was funded by a US$40 million loan from the ADB, co-financed by the EIB for twenty-five million ECUs, and through budgetary allocations from the government. The total cost of the project amounted to US$128 million.

As part of the modernization of the airport, the runway was once again extended to the current 3,000 meters (9,800 ft) in 2001 to accommodate future international flights.^[8]

Contemporary history

On November 12, 2007, Cebu Pacific announced the airport as its third hub.^[9] Likewise, Philippine Airlines announced the airport as its third hub on March 26, 2018.^[10]

In June 2015, the Mindanao Development Authority plans to turn the 1980–2003 airport terminal into a trade and cultural museum.^[11]

Republic Act No. 11457, also known as the Charter of the Davao International Airport Authority, was approved on August 30, 2019, creating and establishing the Davao International Airport Authority, which will manage all airports in the Davao Region, including the Francisco Bangoy International Airport.^[12]

Future development

The airport was slated for upgrading in 2016, but the project was shelved.^[13] In 2017, an expansion project of the airport was announced.^[14] Udenna Corporation submitted an unsolicited proposal in 2018 and received the original proponent status by the Department of Transportation in that year.^[13]

The expansion and upgrading project would involve the expansion of the existing passenger terminal building, landside and airside developments, construction of a parallel taxiway, and the introduction of new technologies.^[13]

Structure

Terminal

The current passenger terminal is a Malay architecture-inspired building which is four times larger than the old terminal. It is a two-level terminal building with an area of approximately 65,000 square meters (700,000 sq ft). It is fully computerized, more secure and has more commercial spaces for concessionaires at approximately 9,000 square meters (97,000 sq ft) of gross leasable area. It has four (4) jetbridges for passenger boarding. It has a Flight Information Display System and closed-circuit television system complementing the terminal's security system. It is designed to handle approximately 4 million passengers annually. The added capacity is complemented by the latest navigational, security, and baggage handling equipment.^[8]

The terminal has 14 domestic and 14 international check-in counters that can handle a steady flow of passenger traffic. The check-in counters are equipped with electronic weighing scales and conveyors and its baggage handling system is also computerized. It has two arrival areas, for domestic and international flights, with two baggage conveyors each. The cargo terminal building covers almost 5,580 square meters (60,100 sq ft) and can handle up to 84,600 tonnes (83,300 long tons; 93,300 short tons) of cargo annually.^[8]

Runway

The airport has a single 3,000-meter (9,800 ft) long by 45-meter (148 ft) wide runway that can handle basically all passenger wide-bodied aircraft, including the Airbus A380. Complementing the runway are two (2) turning pads at each end of it, which help aircraft make a backtrack. The installation of a new instrument landing system (ILS) for both Runways 05 and 23 upgraded its compliance to International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) operating category-Precision Approach Category 1. It can accommodate 8 to 10 aircraft landings per hour, depending on size and has the equivalent 9 gate holding areas for those aircraft. The airport has two dual access taxiways. Taxiways A3 and A4 are used to access the new ramp and terminal; taxiways B and C are used for access to the old airport ramp.^[15]

The Antonov An-124 is, by far, the largest aircraft to land at the airport. It is the fourth largest aircraft in the world, next to the Boeing 747-8.

Other structures

Besides the main terminal building, there are also new support facilities like the administration building, airfield maintenance building, central plant building, hangar for military and training aircraft, and an ARFF building. It has an 800-slot car parking area and four slots for shuttle buses. It has a 3-megawatt (4,000 hp) standby power generator.

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

Cargo

Destination maps
Davao Bacolod Cagayan de Oro Cebu Clark Iloilo Manila Siargao Tagbilaran Zamboanga Domestic destinations from Francisco Bangoy International Airport Red = Year-round destination Blue = Future destination
Davao Doha Quanzhou Shenzhen Singapore International destinations from Francisco Bangoy International Airport Red = Year-round destination Blue = Future destination

Statistics

Data from the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP).^[16][17]

Year Passenger movements Aircraft movements Cargo movements (in kg) Domestic International Total % change Domestic International Total % change Domestic International Total % change 2001 937,751 13,306 951,057 12,730 468 13,198 39,406,667 6,844,067 46,250,734 2002 961,990 14,441 976,431 2.67 11,422 460 11,882 9.97 44,380,469 3,519 44,383,988 4.04 2003 742,436 13,185 755,621 22.61 8,968 480 9,448 20.48 30,779,223 1,654 30,780,877 30.65 2004 1,128,653 22,573 1,151,226 52.35 11,366 634 12,000 27.01 41,972,437 — 41,972,437 36.36 2005 1,322,064 24,971 1,347,035 17.01 11,968 718 12,686 5.72 70,372,167 — 70,372,167 67.66 2006 1,307,635 34,179 1,341,814 0.39 12,920 1,034 13,954 10.00 40,753,487 — 40,753,487 42.09 2007 1,502,600 52,622 1,555,222 15.90 13,778 1,126 14,904 6.81 45,516,843 15,455 45,532,298 11.73 2008 1,646,347 46,530 1,692,877 8.85 15,414 780 16,194 8.66 53,287,642 14,931 53,302,573 17.0 2009 1,935,454 32,496 1,967,950 16.25 9,316 283 9,599 40.72 34,172,210 84,429 34,256,639 35.73 2010 2,207,684 21,493 2,229,177 13.27 9,692 219 9,911 3.25 40,568,631 63,195 40,631,826 18.61 2011 2,364,972 25,167 2,390,139 7.22 10,238 239 10,477 5.71 34,772,206 51,771 34,823,977 14.29 2012 2,923,327 39,916 2,963,243 23.98 25,460 634 26,094 149.06 42,118,391 67,392 42,185,783 21.14 2013 2,773,691 33,538 2,807,229 5.26 29,104 536 29,640 13.59 49,757,177 71,841 49,829,018 18.12 2014 3,408,487 43,992 3,452,479 22.99 22,822 694 23,516 20.66 53,714,155 76,347 53,790,502 7.95 2015 4,099,131 50,974 4,150,105 20.21 26,058 758 26,816 14.03 59,737,244 77,062 59,814,306 11.20 2016 3,462,119 91,082 3,553,201 14.38 32,571 1,186 33,757 25.88 53,590,101 68,400 53,658,501 10.29 2017 4,140,757 93,910 4,234,667 19.18 36,094 2,399 38,493 14.03 57,594,657 159,342 57,753,999 7.63 2018 4,288,408 147,149 4,435,557 4.74 42,740 1,595 44,335 15.18 78,824,575 145,262 78,969,837 36.73 2019 4,303,903 186,183 4,490,086 1.23 42,281 1,759 44,040 0.67 66,767,439 181,762 66,949,201 15.22 2020 955,824 33,265 989,089 77.97 16,329 370 16,699 62.08 33,881,735 44,385 33,926,120 49.33 2021 561,889 12,015 573,904 41.98 6,177 123 6,300 62.27 30,089,418 470,035 30,559,453 9.92 2022 2,689,261 80,285 2,769,546 382.58 18,137 1,044 19,181 204.46 35,166,751 934,141 36,100,892 18.13 An em dash (—) is used when data from CAAP is not available.

Access and transportation

The airport is connected to the city via the Carlos P. Garcia National Highway. The 4-laned La Verna-Mamay Bypass Road was constructed and finished in 2017 near the airport to decongest traffic going from Mamay road to the airport and beyond and vice versa, by avoiding the usually busy intersection of Mamay Road and the Carlos P. Garcia National Highway. To avoid widening a road, which would displace houses and creep onto the airport's site, the road splits into two for 600 meters then merges back. It has a length of 1.7 kilometers, and is able to accommodate 1,000 vehicles per day.^[18]

The planned Davao City Expressway will further connect the airport to the city via a diamond interchange. If it goes according to plan, the entire project will be completed in 2026.^[19]

Accidents and incidents

• On April 19, 2000, Air Philippines Flight 541, a Boeing 737-200 en route from Manila to Davao crashed near the airport, killing 131 people.^[20][21]
• On March 4, 2003, a bomb exploded in the waiting shed outside the old terminal building, killing 21 people. At least 145 others were injured.^[22]
• On the night of August 25, 2008, a Philippine Air Force Lockheed L-100 Hercules bound for Iloilo City crashed into Davao Gulf shortly after takeoff. The aircraft sank 800 feet into the gulf. The incident killed nine crew members plus two Philippine Army soldiers.^[23][24] After several days of a search-and-retrieval operation, the wreckage was found with the help of a US Navy ship, the USNS John McDonnell.^[25]
• On June 2, 2013, Cebu Pacific Flight 971, an Airbus A320 carrying 165 passengers inbound from Manila, overshot the runway during a heavy rain. There were no fatalities, but the plane was heavily damaged.^[26] The damaged aircraft was moved to the old airport terminal for investigation and parting.