Officials in Panglao have said that the New Bohol Airport — complete with a monorail — will be completed by March next year.
Operations at the 7.8-billion peso facility are targeted to start two months after that, with the airport operating 24 hours a day by December 2018.
Panglao Mayor, Nila Montero, said she and other officials had visited the site of the airport to check the status of the project, which has been billed as the “Green Gateway to the World”.
Photos shared on Facebook by the mayor’s team show that the runway has been partially paved and the administration building and control tower are taking shape.
Sunrise-to-sunset operations
Mayor Montero said representatives of Japan Airport Consultants (JAC) had also assured them the project was on track.
By next June, the airport will be open for a sunrise-to-sunset operation, with a 24-hour service beginning in December 2018.
According to JAC, the airport can accommodate seven aircraft at one time, including large aircraft suitable for international flights.
Once the new airport is fully operational, the old Tagbilaran Airport will be closed and transformed into a new Bohol Business Park.
A monorail, the first in Bohol, will initially connect the business park to the new airport as well as the towns of Albur, Corella and Maribojoc.