Probably one of the best persons to pass judgement on the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 1 is a frequent flyer.
Fortunately, I’ve been living with one for many years now.
And so today, I’d like to share with you the thoughts of a frequent flyer on why our airport terminal has been cited as one of the worst and most hated in the world. The writer is my hubby, who frequently goes to Berlin to teach Internet journalism and whose travelogues have been published in various publications including Silver Kris, Singapore Airlines’ in-flight magazine.
Here is his story, which appeared in Asian Dragon magazine recently and which the magazine is allowing me to post online.
Enjoy –
NAIA: Is it terminal?
By Alan C. Robles
When they die, frequent flyers who were good go to Changi Airport. Flyers who were bad end up in NAIA.
Am I saying that the Ninoy Aquino International Airport is hell? Of course not. As far as I know, hell doesn’t charge for the suffering.
But NAIA requires departing passengers to pay a “terminal fee”, currently 750 pesos (US$17). This collection is supposed to go to a fund for improvements to the airport.
Excuse me? Take a moment to rub your eyes. Breathe deeply…You all right? Ready to continue? Yes, you heard right, for improvements to the airport. The very airport where, last year, the toilets had no running water. Instead they each had an attendant standing beside a large full barrel, waiting to offer distressed passengers a dipper of water and lots of toilet paper.
Ghastly as it was, that arrangement was still probably better than this year, when there was no toilet at all in the gate I was in — it had been completely shut down and barricaded and everyone in need had to climb a steep flight of stairs to use a small toilet near one lounge.
No restroom at all - PHOTO BY Alan C. Robles
The male restroom - PHOTO by Alan Robles
At least they replaced the broken bag hook above, but you probably shouldn't sling a heavy bag on it - PHOTO by Alan C. Robles
My best guess is that the “improvement” the terminal fee is supposed to finance is sentimental in nature and really means “keep everything looking the way it did a generation ago.” How else can anyone explain the fact that nearly 30 years after it opened, NAIA (or to give it its current alias, NAIA Terminal 1) still looks and feels the way it did in the 1980s? To be more specific: small, crowded, squalid, shabby, depressing, decrepit, dirty, with a general air of inefficiency, inadequacy, decay and indifference.
Slim pickings at the NAIA Terminal 1 duty free shopping - PHOTO by Alan C. Robles
Passengers waiting at NAIA Terminal 1 don't have much to do - PHOTO by Alan C. Robles
Hopefully, this construction work is for improving NAIA Terminal 1 - PHOTO by Alan. C. Robles
When I think about it, I suppose I’d have misgivings about an airport whose main claim to fame is that somebody was murdered in it. Not exactly what you’d call a Unique Selling Proposition (“our airport: millions of departures and the occasional assassination”). Furthermore, after that fateful day in 1983, Ninoy Aquino went on to become a national icon. But the airport stayed a dump.
I have used NAIA for decades now. If Terminal 1 could talk, I’d imagine it saying a few choice things. “Roll over and die” would be one “Why doncha just shut up and go on out of here” would be another. “Well who cares what you think?” would be a third. What amazes me is that through the decades no management has even come close to putting up halfway decent facilities.
In the 1980s, Singapore’s Changi (my favorite airport) was already streets ahead of NAIA and since then it’s widened the distance to light years. Changi has lounges, plenty of comfortable seats, wonderful shopping and dining options. Also private baby care rooms, play areas and a nifty 12-meter slide for children. Of course it has WiFi, and it’s free, as you’d probably have guessed. But wait, the airport also has hotel cubicles, rest areas, showers, and a swimming pool — I am going to cry now. I once used one of Changi’s free computer terminals and filled up a feedback note to management saying how cool their airport was. I got a thank you reply the day after. Can you imagine anybody from NAIA thanking anyone? NAIA, which last time I was there this year still had no WiFi my devices could detect, whose free computer access seems to consist of an empty table with some wires sticking out of it disconsolately? And whose children’s play area is a small sad hole in the wall?
NAIA's play area is a small sad hole in the wall - PHOTO by Alan C. Robles
Singapore Changi now has a rainforest lounge. I haven’t seen it yet, but I’ll say this: “Hah! A rainforest in Changi? Only now? Don’t they know NAIA has been a jungle for years?” At Terminal 1’s departure concourse, passengers are herded like animals and have to form crude lines snaking around in bewildering patterns. One night, waiting to board a long-haul flight, I saw birds flying through holes in the ceiling (jungle wildlife). In the 1990s, a foreign passenger died of a heart attack caused by an epic failure of air conditioning and a rise in temperatures (jungle heat). Around that period, a section of the roof also gave way, inundating a corridor with cascading water (jungle waterfall).
And what’s a jungle without loathsome beasts? In 1997 a man drove over to NAIA to fetch his arriving brother and got into an argument with airport guards and police officers about parking. The guards ganged up on him, dragged him to a detention cell under the complex, roughed him up and then emerged a short time later to sadly reveal the man was so depressed that he had committed suicide by hanging. Although the murderers got 30-year sentences, it’s not a story you’d want to put in a NAIA brochure — which anyway does not exist.
Surely NAIA must have some good points? I can think of a couple. First, I haven’t lost my bags yet. Though I do remember years ago, I was with a large group of arriving passengers who were told to wait in front of a certain belt for our luggage. It took us a few minutes to realize that our bags were actually arriving in a belt on the other side of the hall. There was a mad scramble.
Second, NAIA is an award winning airport. It’s made it at least two years in a row in Sleepinginairports.net’s list of “Ten Worst Airports In The World.” In fact this year it’s number one. Among the remarks about NAIA: “Bribery and theft exists. Airport taxes are collected, but the money does not seem to go towards the betterment of the airport.” One commenter related: “When I asked a security guard where the smoking area was he told me to follow him…and took me out on to the tarmac (so much for security) where he then insisted on a bribe before he let me back into the terminal. How does one say ‘no’ to a security guard with a gun?”
I have seen an arriving passenger ahead of me tuck a US$5 note into his customs form and passport which he then handed over to the inspector, who returned the documents less the currency. You mustn’t ask me to prove this because I didn’t have my video camera running at that time.
Everybody else in the country except Terminal 1’s management has known it for decades. NAIA is not a jewel in the country’s travel crown. NAIA Terminal 3, the German-designed complex down the road that’s supposed to be Terminal 1’s successor, has been mired in a legal squabble involving corruption for 10 years now. Until it goes fully online, most travelers are stuck with Terminal 1. My goal each time I’m there is to spend as little time as possible in it. But because when departing I try to be there three hours before my flight, I spend a lot of time hanging around. There’s not much to do — the duty free shops are small, the massage services are expensive, the food stalls grotty and horribly overpriced. Early this year two sandwiches, a couple of sodas and a canister of chips cost me PHP 700. On the international budget flight I took, a full meal cost the equivalent of PHP 540.
Transport links, tourist maps, guides and printed information are virtually nonexistent, if you arrive in Manila with nobody to pick you up, you’re at the mercy of highly-priced airport taxis and touts.
Dear transport and tourism authorities, you can do whatever you want to boost our visitor figures and our country’s image but could you refocus your radar on this simple fact? NAIA is the first place in this country visitors will see. And also the last. All our goals, targets and exciting projects will be affected by those impressions.
But the question I’d really love an answer to — the one I’ve asked myself each time I’m inside NAIA is this. Just where do those terminal fee collections really go?
_____________________________
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amphitrite says
Thanks for posting this. We’ll be going on abroad tomorrow and sadly we have to go through NAIA. Ten years ago, I traveled frequently around south east asia and NAIA was the only airport that charges Terminal Fee still the airport smells like old wet socks, so sad that there is no evident improvement after the millions of Pesos they receive from travelers since the last time I saw the place. I’ll remember to bring snacks for my little one so that we won’t have to spend P700 for a bland food. I think NAIA have been Terminally ill decades ago…
raissa says
post again here your experience, pls.
I like your blog.
Life Insurance Philippines says
How many passengers actually left through NAIA 1 last year? If this figure were available, we can easily compute how much was actually collected. And then we can compare this to how much was actually spent for improving the airport.
raissa says
I don’t know.
I’ll see if I can get that but I’m not promising.
Gov’t figures are fuzzy.
Mark says
Such a waste that international airlines cannot operate in NAIA 3..
Pickers in Markham says
This is embarassing as the transition from NAIA to Terminal 3 hit snags (PIATCO, air safety issues, tenants issues, etc.) NAIA should have been closed since 2010 as congress will not appropriate rehab funds for it. DMIA is supposed to replace NAIA as the premier airport thanks to GMA. So the train keeps barelling down when the tracks have been cut off past the last 10 stations. PAL and Terminal 3 tenants are not complaining as far as I know. They don’t use NAIA.
rey corpuz says
i hope dotc sec mar roxas reads this, if he hasn’t already. sana naman maayos na talaga ang paliparang pambansa natin. haaay!
Alundio Aguilar says
I have a feeling that this administration in general nor the secretary of tourism hasn’t quite get it yet. That the number one product that we now sell to people coming over for a visit here in our wonderful, beautiful philippines is “tourism”. To be definitive, divers around the world who have been a witnessed to this splendor that we have. But,somehow along the way, they couldn’t help but complain about the inadequacy of airport personnel when they get to the airport. So, they start their day being in the wrong footing. This isn’t right, is it? We get a lot of revenue from these people who have come from far away places and what they get is a lousy accommodation at the airport. And their bad impression will soon spread around all over the globe. So, why not do something about all these problems at the airport in a jiffy and also, may i suggest that whoever is the present boss should start giving their employees some lectures on “work ethics” and “honesty and sincerity to their job”, this way, they would be able to reconsider giving some wholesome service to arriving passengers that were supposed to be their bread and butter. Worse comes to worse, the manager could always fire all of them. That is after training some people who will replace them. A little nasty isn’t it? There are a lot of rooms for improvement. Just do it!
Pickers in Markham says
As far as I know the congress holds the purse but the budget is crafted by the executive. If they want to spend without congress approval, they have to generate funds elsewhere and Erap, Atong and Gabby Singson are they best people to contact, then activate the binondo central bank with the help of Bobby Ongpin.
jaybeat67 says
I had my first experience returning to the country via NAIA1 in 1991 and it was horrible. I wanted to return to the plane and leave. There were only few immigration counters thus causing a long line and at that time we have to pay for the use of baggage carts. Then moving to the customs area, they were like hawkers calling passengers to cue on them.
Where does the travel tax and terminal fees go? I remember that the travel tax was imposed to deter Filipinos from going abroad to work and avoid brain drain. Is it still applicable in our present economic globalization setting? And why are we still collecting terminal fees? For what?
Here in Davao I have noticed that there are ATO personnel standing before the tube entrance marking the terminal fee receipts. I asked them why do they have to do it and they say so that it wont be used again. The receipt is dated. Its a waste of human resource. Is that their job? I always resent them and inform them that what they are doing is unnecessary.
raissa says
I am pretty sure airport authorities are noting all your complaints and suggestions.
thank you for sharing.
GabbyD says
streets ahead?! i like you mr. robles! :)
Alan says
ssshhh. Community and ironic tweeting aside, actually the phrase wasn’t even invented by a TV sitcom writer, it’s a common UK expression
Johnny Lin says
Like any frequent travelers all we need are:
1. clean working, well equipped restroom/ bathroom facilities.
2. efficient hassle free encounter with airport personnel, customs and immigration
3. relaxing clean waiting lounges/wifi stations with plenty of wide capacity chairs/seats
4. easy commute to connecting domestic/international flights, available transportation, parking faciities in departure/ arrival areas.
5. Family/ children friendly facilities.
6. Absence of terminal fees.
Other amenities like duty free shops, restaurants, bars, stores are ancillaries while waiting for flights. The advantages of NAIA include central metropolitan location, seldom prolonged delayed flights due to foul weather/snow, plenty of available restroom/ housekeeping attendants due to low cost labor. Shameful picture to tourists/foreigners before landing is the aerial view of dilapidated rooftop shanties and dirt of Manila bay and environs.
Main problem of NAIA aside from restrooms and aesthetics are corrupt roaming and behind the counters airport personnel. I passed thru it at least 10 times a year, heard many bad experiences of others but this was one egregious experience I had; going towards the terminal fee while filling up my immigration card I dropped my 1000 bill which I knew. A barong clad security far away noticed it, tip-toed towards me, coyly picked it up, clasped in his hand, then walked away. I called his attention, opened his fist, told him loudly he is a disgraced to the airport for what he did. He ran away. I’m sure others have worst experience; unfortunately, unscrupulous airport employees abound, more than the few good ones. The reason we publicize and give awards to those surprising good natured employees.
Corrupt culture of Airport personnel is the primary shame of our NAIA not only the appearance! “Madaling palitan ang pagmumukha, ugali ang mahirap”
raissa says
YESSSS!
Alan says
Well said Johnny. You might add to that,
(1) we need airport services that don’t look like they’re operated by syndicates out to gouge the public
(2) We need everyone to be treated by airport staff not just politely but also EQUALLY. One reason why our high and mighty politicians and leaders don’t give a hoot about the airport is they personally experience NONE of it. They are escorted through straight to lounges by bowing and scraping staff, and when arriving, enjoy the same treatment. I remember reading in an OFW group, someone saw a senator and family arrive from vacation with up to 16 pieces of luggage. They were simply waved through all the checks
Rallie F. Cruz says
Airport personnel are like Hyenas, they know exactly whom and when a passenger is okay for them or not to serve. And when he has made his target, it becomes normal that there will be another one coming near. both are courteous by the way and very attentive to your needs.They will even give you a good advise if you are old and look weak to let him give you a wheel chair. With that, even cuing the line will become easy, they would even assist you to the windows for checking out, with that again, after you passed the window. the guy attending to you will say that I am only allowed up to here and I have to pass you to another to bring you to your final destination outside. Naturally, you will have to give the guy his tip and have to shell out your hard earned money to the next guy. who will finally bring you to the last check in country while saying I can no longer accompany you outside because we are not allowed. So, you are once again given to another man to bring to your car or your taxi. At he last check-in counter, a man standing away from the counter but not your way, will smile and greet you, “Sir, baka may pang Christmas naman tayo diyan.” and that was early May of the year.
Alan says
Maybe we should change NAIA’s name again, to MRIA — Manila Racketeers International Airport, or maybe MACIA — Manila Always Christmas International Airport
Pickers in Markham says
I vote for Manila Always Christmas Intl Airport !
Alundio Aguilar says
If we can not find ways to solve this extremely important issue, the issue of having to accomodate people from around the world without hearing any single complaint about our airport, perhaps,we should start thinking about giving the proprietary work that needs to be done in an orderly manner to some international corporations who could do their best in managing airports.
Sort of privitising work to foreign corporations. Every countries that i visited seemd to have some sort an agreement with foreign corporations in doing something that they were having a hard time doing, from improvements of their own infrastuctures like roads and bridges to building a very complex “parking lot”, which by the way is in germany.
They do the initial work for us and teach us how it should work before they leave. And the rest is up to us to make it a reality.
However, just like i said before here in my previous blog, this can only be possible if “people who will manage this has all the conviction of honor, integrity and dedication and all of the above.
raissa says
That is one possible arrangement.
In fact that was supposed to be the arrangement with NAIA Terminal 3 and Fraport.
Unfortunately, the entire deal was marred with payoffs.
Alundio Aguilar says
One word to actually describe naia, “DEPLORABLE” ! in it’s physical structure and also, of it’s people.
Someone has to start changing how we do business in this place or we may never see the time that people coming in from international hub will be happy about it. Just like what my mother has taught me when i was little that, “first impression is lasting”. How true indeed.
Those people who are managing this airport didn’t know what’s in the minds of those people coming in, either their first time staying in the philippines or just passing through.
To be honest, managers and their staff just wouldn’t care less. This is where the problem start and ends in a vicious cycle. The managers and staff have benn having this kind of bad “culture” in decades that they think they have to do it or else be frowned upon by their peers working with them.
This administration has to find some ways for it not to happen.
Naia doesn’t need a new and expansive edifice, we need people who will be dedicated and honest to work in this very little space. What good is a new building if you still have people “slashing your bag to get something of value” before it even reaches the tarmac, people who ask for “a bribe or else”, staff who are constant buddies of taxi drivers to rob you when you get in the cab.
In other words, we need total control of this facility.
raissa says
I agree wholeheartedly with your observations.
jamie says
Very depressing but true.
Came home in 1996 for a visit to find a real third world class airport!! Not a good place to be when you’re having tummy problem. And that’s exactly what I had upon departure!!! No toilet paper and no soap!!! To add insult, the PAL flight attendants had the ugliest attitude ever!!! So I promised myself not to fly PAL ever!!
Returned in 2006, yes NAIA has changed… older, darker, smellier and filthier!!!
Wonderful write up, Allan. Funny and interesting!!
Johnny Lin says
Ninanakaw ng mga boss at ibang empleyado ang toilet paper. Yung iba pinagbibili magkasabwat yung boss at empleyado. Kaya pagdating ng gabi ubos na daily supply. Grabe talaga.
Alundio Aguilar says
Whenever someone will mention naia, i am always being reminded of the time when we got to the airport and lo and behold, a guy dressed in an obvious cheap native shirt greeted us a “happy merry christmas and a wonderful new year”, however, this was in april!
Can you just imagine the look on my face? i was totally surprised to hear this from the man, i say to him in reply that; that was really nice of him, however, from the place where we come from, we celebrate christmas in december and we do it only once in a year.
Just at this moment, my wife kind of nudged me on my elbow saying that i was being rude to the guy. Say what? Just hoped that they don’t greet people that are not native to the philippines “happy merry christmas” all year long cause this is really annoying to hear to say the least.
raissa says
You didn’t get why he greeted you Merry Christmas in April.
He was asking for “balato.”
I know this because a classmate of mine visited about June or July this year and she told me that NAIA had changed a bit under the new Aquino administration. For one, no one greeted her Merry Christmas this time.
I asked her what she did the last time she was greeted in this manner.
She said she handed the man around US$5.
Alundio Agilar says
Well, that should do it. However, i was thinking that perhaps if i do give in to these crooks and give them money, i will only be “encouraging” them more to do the same thing to other passengers. And we are all gonna suffer. And this, i believed should be monitored more by airport police and do something about it. I am extremely disturbed by this to tell you. This is what i have been fantasizing sometimes whenever my plane was about to hit the ground at naia, that, somehow someday we are all gonna be a witness to a very wholesome and safe atmosphere at the airport, short of saying you have come to la la land. Anyways, i always find out the reality that this isn’t so, as soon as the lady in the cabin tells me that i have to let go of my scotch on ice that i have been babying for quite some time. Well, there are still room for improvements, is there really?
raissa says
When someone greets you Merry Christmas NOT in December you greet back heartily and say –
Thank you! Where’s my prize for visiting Manila?
Alundio Aguilar says
corrections on the name, it should read; Aguilar. I was in a dark room that’s why. thanks
boni says
Traveler’s pay $17 for airport tax. That’s roughly $119M a year in taxes. Where does it go?
The NAIA administrator should be transparent to the public about this.
Why does it have to be advertised in the media before something gets done? Dept of tourism and health should take some of the responsibility in monitoring NAIA and the rest of the airports.
Alan says
Precisely — show how that airport fee has been and is being used, or abolish it completely.
Pickers in Markham says
Alan – not sure it’s as simple as that. I’m no apologist for these guys but as fas as I know gov’t revenues go to the national coffers thru the BIR, and appropriation process decides who gets how much. There are funds that go around the BIR net, though, like coco levy, veterans funds, OWWA funds, PAGCOR, etc. Just about everything you don’t ger a BIR receipt for. The question is: can P-NOY tap them to fix NAIA? I have feeling he can’t.
Romeo Victor says
I don’t think so Pickers in Markham, MIAA or Manila International Airport Authority, the Operator of NAIA is an authority. They have a board of directors, unlike other government agencies, that manages their own finances. Revenues can be used in operation without having to go though appropriation being done by congress. Unlike other agencies whose revenues have to go to the National Treasury and expenses have to be budgeted and appropriated by congress.
Authorities operate like corporation that only issues dividends (Percentage of net income) to the national treasury.
Tony B.Soliman says
I have been out of the country 24 years as an OFW and been flying in and out of NIAA at least 3 times a year and I still consider NIAA as a friendly international airport except in the departure inspection area where it is really a problem and need some improvements.
There are only two x-ray machines and this creates a long queue for passengers, another is toilet hygiene, additional urinals. I have passed a lot of international airports such as Bangkok, Ho Chi Minh (Saigon), Phnom Penh, Brunei, Singapore’s Changi, Taipei, Tokyo’s Narita, Honolulu,Boston’s Logan, New York’s JFK, SFO, Detroit, Amsterdam, London’s Gatwik, Dubai, Muscat, Doha, Bahrain, Abu Dhabi, Riyadh, Dharan and I do not consider NIAA 1 as the worst airport. It really depends what criteria, there should be parameters how passenger based his perception.
The airport was wrongly designed. What can you expect from the late Architect Locsin, he has no experience in airport design..
He had to hire the french consulting firm Renardet, whose experience is not airport design. NIAA was not designed as modular so there is no way to expand the airport.
raissa says
What would you say, Tony, if you found out that the architectural firm that landed the contract to renovate NAIA 1 is again Locsin’s firm?
Which is what recently happened.
Alan says
if I remember right, terminal 1 was designed and built with a viewing deck on the roof for the public. Has anyone ever gotten that far in all these years? Also, if you’re an arriving passenger and you try to make your way to the departure area to pick up a cab there (in order to avoid the overpriced taxi cartel) — good luck. There is no easy way up with all your luggage.
Jay says
No matter how difficult to get up to departure area just to get a taxi, I always do that in order to avoid using those overpriced taxi in arrival area, even the metered ones. The metered taxi is just the same as the fixed price taxi. And don’t expect the driver of the metered taxi to give you the change no matter how much it is. I guess the operator has to factor-in the bribes they give to airport officials for them to be profitable. And it return, they get to monopolize the taxi service there. It’s a win-win situation for conniving crooks and vultures in that Manila safari.