US recently revived the Sangley Point International Airport rehabilitation project in Cavite, a civilian airport, to make it part of its planned Luzon Economic Corridor. The US Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) announced on May 12 it would fund a feasibility study to transform the airport into a dual-use (civilian and military) facility.

Sangley Point used to be a US Navy base. The US returned it to the Philippine state in 1971. The US plans to use Sangley Point for direct flights from major US airports. American technologies such as scanners, radar, and telecommunications systems will be used there to ensure US control.

The project will have Cavitex Holdings Inc. (CHI) and The S-A-P Group as US partners. CHI is owned by the Viratas, a family close to the Marcoses. One of the Viratas, Cesar Virata, was the US-Marcos Sr dictatorship’s prime minister. The S-A-P Group is an aviation consulting firm based in San Francisco, California.

The rehabilitation contract was previously awarded in 2019 to China Communications Construction Co. (C4) and its partner MacroAsia Corporation of Lucio Tan. The US placed C4 on a “blacklist” and urged the Duterte regime to cut ties with it. The Duterte regime canceled the contract in 2021 after finding deficiencies. In 2022, the contract was awarded to the Viratas’ CHI, in partnership with House of Investments, Inc. of the Yuchengco family and the foreign firm Samsung C&T.

Sangley Point has a unique strategic position at the mouth of Manila Bay. It is close to Metro Manila while having a direct route to the South China Sea. The US is preparing the airport so it can quickly adapt as a forward operating base for troops and military assets.