History
The site of Bacolod–Silay Airport was one of the main airfields for the Imperial Japanese Army Air Service (IJAAS) bombers and fighters in Negros. It was captured by American forces in 1944 and 1945. After the war, parts of the airfield became a sugarcane plantation.
Planning for a new airport for Bacolod commenced in 1997, when the Japan International Cooperation Agency initiated a study indicating the need for expansion at four Philippine airports: namely Bacolod City Domestic Airport, Mandurriao Airport in Iloilo City, Legazpi Airport in Legazpi and Daniel Z. Romualdez Airport in Tacloban.[4]
In February 1999, another JICA study was commissioned, this time on the detailed plan of the new airport.[4] The study was completed by March 2000 and was funded by a 430 million-yen grant. Immediately after the completion of the study, JICA hired Pacific Consultants International as advisers to the project.[4]
The project was opened for bidding on August 25, 2003, with the winning bid going to the Takenaka–Itochu Joint Venture (TIJV).[4] Physical construction on the new 4.3 billion-peso airport, funded in part by an 8.2 billion yen loan, commenced in August 2004.[3] A 900-day deadline was imposed for the airport to be completed, which broadly corresponded to January 2007.[4] During construction, remains of the Japanese airfield and some war aircraft wrecks were dug.
On July 13, 2007, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo attended the facility's inauguration.[5] The airport was considered complete by July 16, but there was "considerable debate" over whether the airport should be opened for regular commercial traffic due to the 500 m runway extension, necessary for accommodating larger aircraft, not having been built by that time.[6]
The first aircraft ever to land at the airport was a small fourteen-seater turboprop owned by Vincent Aviation. The Reims-Cessna F406 with aircraft registration number ZK-VAF, piloted by Steve Gray of New Zealand landed at the airport on September 26, 2007, at 9:55 a.m.[7]
The airport commenced regular commercial operations and was officially opened on January 18, 2008.[7] The first commercial flight to arrive was Cebu Pacific's Flight 5J 473 from Manila, an Airbus A319-100 piloted by Silay native Captain Allan Garces which landed at 5:22 a.m. PST on the day of opening.[7] The first international flight to arrive at the airport was a chartered plane from Almaty, Kazakhstan which landed at 10:58 a.m. on January 2, 2009 carrying eight passengers and eight crew members.[8][9]
Zest Air chartered international flights to and from Incheon using the Airbus A320 from January 7 to February 22, 2012, and also used to serve the route seasonally for South Korean golfers.[10] This seasonal route was also operated by Philippine Airlines utilizing the Airbus A321 from December 24, 2015, to February 21, 2016, offering flights to tourists, non-golfers, and the local flying public.[11]
By late 2014, the airport has been equipped with customs, immigration and quarantine booths in preparation for the increase in international arrivals.[12] Since October 2015, the Bureau of Immigration has also indicated readiness to deploy personnel at the airport should regularly scheduled international flights commence, but as of 2023, there are no regularly scheduled international flights operating to and from the airport.[13]
