From Surf Wiki (app.surf) — the open knowledge base

Francisco Bangoy International Airport

Airport serving Davao, Philippines

Field	Value
name	Francisco Bangoy International Airport
nativename	Tugpahanang Pangkalibutanon sa Francisco Bangoy
Paliparang Pandaigdig ng Francisco Bangoy
image	Davao Air Traffic.jpg
image_size	270px
caption	The airport in January 2018 as viewed from across the runway
IATA	DVO
ICAO	RPMD
WMO	98753
type	Public
owner-oper	Davao International Airport Authority
timezone	PHT
utc	UTC+08:00
city-served	Metro Davao
location	Barangay Sasa, Buhangin, Davao City, Philippines
opened
hub	{{ubl	class=nowrap
operating_base	Cebu Pacific
elevation-f	96
elevation-m	29
metric-elev	yes
coordinates
image_map
pushpin_map	Mindanao mainland#Philippines
pushpin_label	DVO/RPMD
r1-number	05/23
r1-length-f	9,843
r1-length-m	3,000
r1-surface	Asphalt concrete
metric-rwy	yes
stat-year	2023
stat1-header	Passengers
stat1-data	3,844,895
38.82%
stat2-header	Aircraft movements
stat2-data	24,993
30.30%
stat3-header	Cargo (in kg)
stat3-data	45,194,773
25.19%
footnotes	Source: CAAP

Paliparang Pandaigdig ng Francisco Bangoy | owner-oper = Davao International Airport Authority | city-served = Metro Davao | PAL Express | Philippine Airlines}} | elevation-f = 96 | elevation-m = 29 | metric-elev = yes | r1-number = 05/23 | r1-length-f = 9,843 | r1-length-m = 3,000 | r1-surface = Asphalt concrete | metric-rwy = yes | stat-year = 2023 | stat1-header = Passengers | stat1-data = 3,844,895 38.82% | stat2-header = Aircraft movements | stat2-data = 24,993 30.30% | stat3-header = Cargo (in kg) | stat3-data = 45,194,773 25.19%

Francisco Bangoy International Airport , also known as Davao International Airport, is the main airport serving Davao City and Davao Region in the Philippines. Serving as the main gateway to Mindanao, it is the busiest airport on the island 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 1200 m 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.

As a civil aviation airport

The Davao (Sasa) Airport was opened for civil aviation on August 25, 1958. It initially consisted of a new 1500 m long by 30 m wide concrete runway and a 200 m long by 60 m wide apron. The grass airstrip was later converted as a taxiway for general aviation.

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. 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 2000 m and 36 m, respectively, while the apron was widened to 100 m. Five years later, the runway was further extended and widened to 2500 m and to the current 45 m, respectively.

Construction for a new terminal designed by Filipino architect Leandro Locsin began in 1976. It was designed to handle a million passengers annually 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. 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. After the launch of scheduled international flights to Davao, regular flights to Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia and Singapore were also commenced by Malaysia Airlines in 1996 and SilkAir in 1997, respectively.

Expansion

Rapid growth at the airport precipitated the construction of a million interim international terminal beside the airport's then-existing terminal, 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). 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 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 3000 m in 2001 to accommodate future international flights.

Contemporary history

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

In June 2015, the Mindanao Development Authority announced its plans to turn the 1980–2003 airport terminal into a trade and cultural museum.

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.

Future developments

A night shot of the Davao airport ramp during rush hour

The airport was slated for upgrading in 2016, but the project was shelved. In 2017, an expansion project of the airport was announced. Udenna Corporation submitted an unsolicited proposal in 2018 and received the original proponent status by the Department of Transportation in that year. The initial expansion and upgrading project aimed to include the expansion of the existing passenger terminal building, landside and airside developments, construction of a parallel taxiway, and the introduction of new technologies.

However, as of 2025, the Francisco Bangoy International Airport Project is now moving forward under a new public-private partnership (PPP) initiative led by the Davao International Airport Consortium. The Davao International Airport Authority (DIAA) is currently evaluating a ₱12.9 billion proposal to upgrade, expand, operate, and maintain the airport under a Rehabilitate-Operate-Transfer (ROT) model.

The new expansion plan involves two key phases. Phase 1 includes the expansion and renovation of the passenger terminal building, upgrades to the existing cargo terminal, the construction of a fire station, the apron and parking lot expansion, the installation of a parallel taxiway, and the expansion of passenger access roads; while Phase 2 includes the further passenger terminal building expansion, the construction of a new cargo terminal, the additional apron and parking lot expansion, and the enhancement of ground support equipment (GSE) roads. As of January 27, 2025, the Davao International Airport Authority (DIAA) informed the proponent that it will proceed with the detailed evaluation of the proposal. The PPP Center endorsed the project to the DIAA on January 16, 2025, after determining its completeness under Section 10 of the PPP Code.

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 65000 m2. It is fully computerized, more secure and has more commercial spaces for concessionaires at approximately 9000 m2 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.

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 5580 m2 and can handle up to 84600 t of cargo annually.

Runway

The airport has a single 3000 m long by 45 m 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.

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 MW standby power generator.

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

Cargo

Destination maps
{{Location map+	Philippines	width=500	float=center
{{Location map+	Asia	width=500	float=center

Statistics

Data from the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP).

Year	Passenger movements	Aircraft movements	Cargo movements (in kg)	Domestic	International	Total	% change	Domestic	International	Total	% change
937,751	13,306	951,057		12,730	468	13,198		39,406,667	6,844,067	46,250,734
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
3,714,825	130,070	3,844,895	38.82	23,675	1,318	24,993	30.30	44,989,027	205,746	45,194,773	25.19

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 four-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.

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.

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.
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.
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. 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.
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.

References

"Aircraft, Passenger, and Cargo Movements".
Ajero, Antonio M.. (2003-12-01). "Nonoy Garcia, Elias Lopez and other airport tales". [[Sun.Star]] Davao.
"Speech of President Garcia during the inaugural ceremonies of the opening of Davao Airport, held at 9:30 a.m., August 25, 1958".
(March 1993). "2.4.1 National Development Plan". Japan International Cooperation Agency.
"Republic Act No. 2762".
"Malaysia Airlines March 30, 1997 Route Map".
"MALAYSIA AIRLINES TIMETABLE 1996".
(February 21, 2017). "SilkAir marks 20th year in Davao". Sunstar Davao.
"Upgraded Davao City International Airport Is Ready for More Passengers and Bigger Aircraft".
(2007-11-12). "Cebu Pacific to make Davao its 3rd hub". Cebu Pacific.
Cayon, Manuel. (March 26, 2018). "Hong Kong, Bangkok eyed for next foreign route of PAL's Davao hub". BusinessMirror.
Francisco, Carmelito Q.. (June 16, 2015). "Old Davao airport set for conversion to trade hall". BusinessWorld.
(2019-09-10). "Duterte approves creation of Davao International Airport Authority". Philippine Daily Inquirer.
Mellejor, Lilian. (April 4, 2019). "Udenna eyes Davao airport project". Philippine News Agency.
(2017-08-03). "With more people going to Davao, expansion of international airport gets a boost". Interaksyon.
"Francisco Bangoy International Airport Project {{!}} PPP Center".
"Airports – Davao Int'l Airport". CAAP.
Rosales, Elijah Felice. (4 November 2024). "Cebu Pacific hikes Davao seats to 289K". The Philippine Star.
Cruz, Hazel Jane. (26 September 2025). "Local airline launches nonstop Cebu-Guam flights". GMA Network.
Caseñas, Emma. (11 November 2021). "PAL to resume regular flights between Bohol, Davao". Bohol Chronicle.
(August 31, 2025). "AirAsia Philippines Relaunches Flights Out of Cebu".
Romero, Maria Bernadette. (30 June 2025). "New PAL-Qatar codeshare connects Doha". Daily Tribune.
Colina, Antonio IV. (9 January 2026). "PH eyes revival of flights between Davao and Manado, Kuala Lumpur". MindaNews.
Alama, Rudolph. (12 January 2026). "Booming Davao-Danang chartered flights seen as step toward regular direct service". [[Philippine Information Agency]].
Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines. (23 July 2018). "Yearly Passenger, Cargo and Aircraft Movements of all airports in the Philippines 1997-2017".
"Statistics {{!".
Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines. "Aircraft, Passenger, and Cargo Movements".
Alama, Rudolph Ian. (June 29, 2018). "New bypass road opens in Davao City". Philippine Information Agency.
(2019). "Project description". eia.emb.gov.ph.
(2007-11-30). "Air disaster timeline". BBC News.
(2000-05-19). "Accident description".
"Philippines airport bomb kills 18 – March 4, 2013".
(2008-08-27). "Hercules goes down in Davao Gulf; 9 missing". Philippine Daily Inquirer.
Ranter, Harro. "ASN Aircraft accident Lockheed L-100-20 Hercules 4593 Barangay Bukana, San Pedro Extension, Davao City".
(2008-08-30). "US Navy ship to help locate crashed C-130". Cebu Daily News.
Manlupig, Karlos. (June 2, 2013). "Cebu Pacific plane overshoots Davao airport runway". Rappler.

Info: Wikipedia Source

This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.

airports-in-the-philippines buildings-and-structures-in-davao-city transportation-in-mindanao airports-established-in-1958

Want to explore this topic further?

Ask Mako anything about Francisco Bangoy International Airport — get instant answers, deeper analysis, and related topics.

Research with Mako

Free with your Surf account

Content sourced from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This content may have been generated or modified by AI. CloudSurf Software LLC is not responsible for the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of AI-generated content. Always verify important information from primary sources.

Report