CLARK FREEPORT 7/22/2020 ? What is an aerotropolis?  Well, according to the website aerotropolis.com, it is ?a new urban form where cities are built around airports speedily connecting time-sensitive suppliers, manufacturers, distributors, and businesspeople to distant customers, clients, and marketplaces.?  You may ask, what does an aerotropolis have to do with Clark International Airport (CRK)?  If the Luzon International Premier Airport Development Corporation (LIPAD) has anything to say about it, everything! 

Big plans lay head for the Clark International Airport in the coming years. This airport site projected to become the central focus of growth and development in the Central Luzon area.  LIPAD is the current contractual management company for the Clark airport, including the management of a massive 800-hectare parcel of land surrounding the airport within the Clark Civil Aviation Complex. 

Yet another acronym in this story for you to remember is ADPI which stands for Aeroport de Paris Ingenierie. So, what is this French sounding acronym?  This is simply a master plan and feasibility study accomplished in 2013 through a grant from the French government.  Just recently, the organization that is LIPAD said it is planning on updating its own master plan to include the ADPI airport development study. 

So, where will this take us regarding an aerotropolis future for Clark?  Well, LIPAD, in accordance with the ADPI study proposal, is planning for Clark to become the next premier mixed-use township destination in Central Luzon. Think of NAIA on steroids.  The plans are for Clark International Airport to be the very center of it all. The mega-facility will integrate general aviation, commercial logistics, tourism, employment/work, lifestyle/living, along with leisure, all combined in the Philippines new, premier mixed-use world-class aerotropolis.

LIPAD Corporation team members are currently meeting with government officials to fast track this plan. Some of the companies comprising LIPAD include the following:  

• Filinvest Development Corporation, a publicly listed holding company focused on the hospitality, real estate, and transportation markets.
• JG Summit Holdings Inc., with business interests in air transportation, banking, food manufacturing, hotels and more.
• Airport Ground Support Solutions Inc., an airport operations and passenger handling company.
• Changi Airports Philippines (I) Pte. Ltd., whose parent company is a leading consultant, manager, and investor in the aviation market, growing world-class airports around the planet.

So, hang onto your hats as development of the Clark International Airport continues at an unprecedented rate.  See you at the aerotropolis.