Francisco B. Reyes Airport (

Filipino Filipino may refer to: * Something from or related to the Philippines ** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines. ** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...

: ''Paliparang Francisco B. Reyes''; Hiligaynon: ''Hulugpaan sang Francisco B. Reyes''), more commonly known as Busuanga Airport , is an

airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surface ...

serving the general area of Coron, located in

Busuanga Island Busuanga, is the largest island in the Calamian Group of islands in the province of Palawan in the Philippines. Busuanga Island is the second largest island in the province after Palawan island itself. The island is located halfway between the i ...

in the province of

Palawan Palawan (), officially the Province of Palawan ( cyo, Probinsya i'ang Palawan; tl, Lalawigan ng Palawan), is an archipelagic province of the Philippines that is located in the region of Mimaropa. It is the largest province in the country in ...

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. It is also shared with the neighboring municipality of

Busuanga Busuanga, officially the Municipality of Busuanga ( tgl, Bayan ng Busuanga), is a 3rd class municipality in the province of Palawan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 25,617 people. History Oral tradition has it ...

, located on the western half of the island. Since November 10, 2008, the airport has been named after Francisco B. Reyes, the mayor of Coron from 1936 to 1939 who donated the land that forms the current airport complex.Republic of the Philippines. (Enacted: November 10, 2008)
Proclamation No. 1665, s. 2008 - RENAMING BUSUANGA AIRPORT TO FRANCISCO B. REYES AIRPORT LOCATED AT THE MUNICIPALITY OF CORON, PROVINCE OF PALAWAN
Retrieved August 25, 2015. The airport is classified as a Class 2 principal (minor domestic) airport by the

Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP, ; fil, Pangasiwaan sa Abyasyong Sibil ng Pilipinas) is the civil aviation authority of the Philippines and is responsible for implementing policies on civil aviation to assure safe, econo ...

, a body of the Department of Transportation that is responsible for the operations all airports in the Philippines except the major international airports. The airport is surrounded by a protected ranch used to raise cows. The grass growing on the property is imported from Australia.

History and expansion

Francisco B. Reyes Airport is the target of two expansion projects. The first expansion, funded in part by a US$3 million loan from the

Korea International Cooperation Agency The Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA, Korean: 한국국제협력단, Hanja: 韓國國際協力團) was established in 1991 by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of South Korea as a governmental organization for Official Development ...

(KOICA) in cooperation with the

Department of Transportation and Communications The Department of Transportation (DOTr; fil, Kagawaran ng Transportasyon) is the executive department of the Philippine government responsible for the maintenance and expansion of viable, efficient, and dependable transportation systems as eff ...

, broke ground in March 2007. The expansion, which included the construction of a new terminal building, the completion of the airport's then-unfinished concrete runway and the upgrading of other facilities, was inaugurated by President

Gloria Macapagal Arroyo Maria Gloria Macaraeg Macapagal Arroyo (, born April 5, 1947), often referred to by her initials GMA, is a Filipino academic and politician serving as one of the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Philippines, House Deputy Spe ...

on November 17, 2008. The airport terminal was severely damaged by

Typhoon Yolanda Typhoon Haiyan, known in the Philippines as Super Typhoon Yolanda, was one of the most powerful tropical cyclones ever recorded. On making landfall, Haiyan devastated portions of Southeast Asia, particularly the Philippines. It is one of the ...

(Haiyan) in November 2013. Rehabilitation work was commenced by the municipality of Coron immediately after the typhoon to enable the airport to continue receiving passengers, and was completed by October 2014. Traffic to and from Coron was negatively affected by the airport's closure, with tourist arrivals falling by up to 75%. A

₱ The Philippine peso sign (₱) is the currency symbol used for the Philippine peso, the official currency of the Philippines. The symbol resembles a Roman letter P with two horizontal strokes. It differs from the currency symbol used for the pe ...

4.1 billion second expansion is also planned for the airport, funded entirely by the national government, with the aim of making it capable of supporting both jet and nighttime operations.

Airlines and destinations

References

External links

World Aero Data - Busuanga Airport (USU) Details
{{authority control Airports in the Philippines Buildings and structures in Palawan

History and expansion

Airlines and destinations

See also

References

External links