Ninoy Aquino International Airport is once again making headlines due to numerous issues that concern every traveler. This time, this main gateway in Manila is tagged as one of the worst airports in continental Asia. The airport ranks as the fifth worst airports around the continent, generating mass media attention to both local and international networks. The ranking was made by a famous website, which is Sleeping in Airports, showing several other airports across the Asian countries that are apparently problematic for travelers.
The result came after a survey conducted to travelers who have been in these airports in a certain time in their lifetime. Participants are able to comment their perception regarding the condition of airports where they traveled recently in 2016. The choices were all from the Asian continent, which is a fair survey that was asked with random participants. Travelers were able to set their reasons about these airports as based on the facilities, services, sanitation, and safety issues experienced from these airports. The result will surely cause an alarm for authorities in these respective countries for tagging their airports as one of the least favorite gateways to their lands.
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| Ninoy Aquino International Airport |
As previously known as the Manila International Airport in 1970's it was one of the finest airports in the world due to its sophisticated technology with highly hospitable services by airport personnel during that time. But when the assassination of Benigno Aquino Jr. happened in 1983, the Philippines suffered a political turmoil that resulted in years of poor maintenance. In 2000, the Ninoy Aquino International Airport started to be recognized by numerous travel agencies as one of the worst airports in the world as well as in Asia.
The Philippine government became concerned with the latest mentioning of their main gateways by several travelers, agencies, and organizations. This is due to the issues of obsolete facilities that affects the comfort of every passenger traveling in and out of Manila. Some passengers prefer to either depart or arrive in other airports in the Philippines, which has better facilities, services, and comfort than the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Manila. Provincial international airports across the country are regarded by travel agencies and organizations as better airports, which is listed as one of the best in Asia.
NAIA is one of the top 5 worst airports in Asia
Here are the 5 travel Facts why Ninoy Aquino International Airport is one of the worst in Asia
1. Bullet Planting scam: This is referred in Tagalog as "tanim bala", which is an activity where corrupt airport personnel intentionally plants the bullets to the luggage or bags of passengers as a way to extort money. They collaborate with other corrupt personnel who will be apprehending them until they will give money. Bullet planting already traumatized their victims, delaying their flights, losing their jobs, and destroyed their self-esteem. This scheme made Ninoy Aquino International Airport famous worldwide, attracting international news agencies.
2. Problems with the air-conditioning system: Passengers complaints about the ambiance inside the airport because the air-conditioned machines are faulty or not even working at the airport. The Philippines is a tropical country located near the equator, which is why the country receives a direct sunlight, making the climate hot and humid. When air-conditioning stops, the airport becomes a hot place for every passenger to stay, making them uncomfortable while they are waiting their flights.
3. Transfer of terminals: One main issue about the Ninoy Aquino International Airport is about their transfer of flights from one terminal to another. Each terminal is separated, requiring every passenger to take the road to reach the other terminal. The real problem when you are required to take your flight to another terminal is about the traffic menace. Metro Manila is also tagged to have one of the worst traffic in the world. So when you will be transferred to another terminal, expect that you will miss your flight. Better arrive 4 to 5 hours earlier if you are going to Ninoy Aquino International Airport.
4. Taxi scammers: One of the worst reasons why Ninoy Aquino International Airport is the worst is their scamming taxi drivers. These are random taxi cabs that charge a whopping 2000% increase than the regular rate. For example, if you are going to ride a taxi from the NAIA airport to a bus station in Cubao, you will normally charge between 150 to 200 Philippine peso. Taxi scammers charge between 2,000 to 4,000 pesos, which is unacceptable and should be reported to the police immediately. So you better book for online taxi services such as Grab or Uber while you are inside the airport to prevent riding scamming cabs.
5. Faulty facilities: Hanging ceilings, cracks in windows, and lack of running water in the comfort rooms are just some random service complaints that travelers comments about the Ninoy Aquino International Airport. When it rains hard, there are places where ceilings start to drip water coming directly from the rain. These are significant issues that could pose safety risks to the travelers. The airport was built many decades ago, which needs a complete renovation to replace all facilities with a high-end technology.
Among the top 5 worst airports in Asia, the NAIA is obviously a part of the list. Other airports include the Kathmandu Tribhuvan International Airport in Nepal, Tashkent International Airport in Uzbekistan, Peshawar Bacha Khan International Airport in Pakistan, and Kabul International Airport in Afghanistan.
But the good news is that there are several areas in the Philippines that has the best operating international airports. These are Kalibo International Airport in Aklan, Clark International Airport in Aklan, Mactan-Cebu International Airport in Cebu, Francisco Bangoy International Airport in Davao, Iloilo International Airport, and Subic Bay International Airport.
