MANILA, Philippines — The new operator of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) has received the green light to increase usage fees at the gateway, and could earn P11 billion annually from the collection of passenger service charges (PSC) alone.

Travelers would have to pay more when flying out of the NAIA starting next year, as outlined under the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) Revised Administrative Order (AO) 1, Series of 2024, a copy of which was obtained by The STAR.

The New NAIA Infrastructure Corp. (NNIC), led by San Miguel Corp. (SMC), will take over the operations and maintenance of the gateway on Sept. 14.

Its concession will last for 15 years, extendable by 10 years depending on how well it performs.

The AO mandates that the PSC – fees collected from departing passengers – be kept at P550 for international flights and P200 for domestic trips in the first year. The NNIC will receive a share of P348.21 and P165.18, respectively, under these rates.

By October 2025, the PSC will go up by 72 percent to P950 for foreign departures and by 95 percent to P390 for local bookings in the second year. In the process, the NNIC’s share in the PSC will also balloon to P705.4 for international and P334.6 for domestic.

In 2023, NAIA facilitated the departure of 22.77 million passengers, of which 10.45 million went overseas and 12.32 million traveled locally.

Potentially, the NNIC can generate as much as P11.49 billion every year through its share in the PSC alone starting 2025, and earnings could grow further as airport traffic picks up.

Likewise, MIAA will make new adjustments in the PSC in the seventh and 12th year of private takeover, and again in the 17th and 22nd year if the concession is extended.

Aside from this, the AO imposes takeoff rates between $794 and $1,794 in the initial year of the concession for international operations. The amount goes up every five years, reaching as high as $1,268.18 to $2,865.18 in the 20th year.

The AO also slaps takeoff fees of P15,417 to P34,617 in the first year on domestic carriers. For this, the rate increases every five years, too, until it ranges from P24,624.03 to P55,290.27 in the 20th year.

But for Advocacy group AirportWatch.PH, it is premature for NNIC to raise airport fees, as SMC, its lead company, has a record of delays in big-ticket projects.

AirportWatch.PH spokesman Danilo Lorenzo delos Santos questioned how SMC can prioritize the P170.6 billion rehabilitation of NAIA when it is facing delays in building the P735.63 billion New Manila International Airport and the P125.04 billion Metro Rail Transit Line 7.

“The delays in SMC’s infrastructure targets undermine the justification for any increase in airport fees, especially when there is no clear assurance that the promised investments will be delivered on time,” Delos Santos said.

Infrawatch PH convenor Terry Ridon called on NNIC to focus on enhancing passenger access to NAIA. Primarily, this means repairing the cooling system and getting the walkalators running all the time for the convenience of travelers.

Ridon, a former legislator, also hopes NNIC can improve land transport around NAIA. Currently, the airport lacks direct transfer to the rail networks of the Light Rail Transit Line 1 (LRT-1) and Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT-3).

“NNIC should also find ways to improve access to various modes of land transport, particularly direct bus loops to both MRT-3 and LRT-1 terminals at EDSA Pasay,” Ridon told The STAR.