BOOSTING TOURISM | Officials of Borongan City led by Mayor Jose Ivan Agda, Eastern Samar Gov. Ben Evardone (second and third from left) and Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines Director General Manuel Antonio Tamayo open on June 19, 2023, the new passenger terminal at the city鈥檚 airport, which the local government built for P11.68 million. (Photo from the Facebook page of the聽 Borongan City Information Office)
BORONGAN CITY, Eastern Samar, Philippines 鈥擳his capital city of Eastern Samar has opened a new air terminal to cater to travelers, amid a steady rise of passengers seen here since the start of the year.
The new terminal at Borongan Airport, which was inaugurated on June 19, was described by Mayor Jose Ivan Agda as a 鈥渟ymbol of hope鈥� and represented the city鈥檚 commitment to providing a seamless travel experience that would not only foster increased economic activity but also contribute to the growth of the city鈥檚 agricultural and tourism sectors.
The decision of the city government to build the terminal, at a cost of P11.68 million, would 鈥渆nsure the long-term sustainability鈥� of the airport and 鈥渟et a precedent as the first local government to undertake such an endeavor,鈥� the mayor said on Friday.
Agda hoped that other concerned government agencies would 鈥渁lso follow suit, recognizing the pressing need for additional infrastructure [at the airport], such as fencing, a control tower, and navigational equipment.鈥�
Ruperto Ambil II, city information officer and head of local airport operations, said the airport has serviced 2,118 inbound and 1,904 outbound passengers in the last six months since the Borongan-Cebu flights started in December 2022.
According to Ambil, the 4,022 passengers that the city has serviced in six months were far greater than the initial flights on Siargao Island, which only had 1,126 passenger movements in three years.
Borongan Airport started operation on Dec. 19, 2022, the same day that Philippine Airlines started its Borongan-Cebu and vice versa flights, using an 86-seater Dash-8 Q400 turboprop aircraft, every Monday and Friday.
Last week, the and the city government of Borongan signed a memorandum of agreement to improve the local airport operation, conduct preventive maintenance on the facilities and develop another terminal.