beyond and vice versa, by avoiding the usually busy intersection of Mamay Road and the Carlos P. Garcia National Highway. To avoid widening a road, which would displace houses and creep onto the airport's site, the road splits into two for 600 meters then merges back. It has a length of 1.7 kilometers, and is able to accommodate 1,000 vehicles per day. The planned Davao City Expressway will further connect the airport to the city via a diamond interchange. If it goes according to plan, the entire project will be completed in 2026. Accidents and incidents On April 19, 2000, Air Philippines Flight 541, a Boeing 737-200 en route from Manila to Davao crashed near the airport, killing 131 people. On March 4, 2003, a bomb exploded in the waiting shed outside the old terminal building, killing 21 people. At least 145 others were injured. On the night of August 25, 2008, a Philippine Air Force Lockheed L-100 Hercules bound for Iloilo City crashed into Davao Gulf shortly after takeoff. The aircraft sank 800 feet into the gulf. The incident killed nine crew members plus two Philippine Army soldiers. After several days of a search-and-retrieval operation, the wreckage was found with the help of a US Navy ship, the USNS John McDonnell. On June 2, 2013, Cebu Pacific Flight 971, an Airbus A320 carrying 165 passengers inbound from Manila, overshot the runway during a heavy rain. There were no fatalities, but the plane was heavily damaged. The damaged aircraft was moved to the old airport terminal for investigation and parting. On January 16, 2018, Cebu Pacific Flight 970, an Airbus A330-300 bound for Manila, was delayed by almost three hours over a bomb joke by one of the passengers onboard. On January 29, 2023, another bomb joke occurred at the airport, causing Cebu Pacific Flight 978, an Airbus A321neo bound for Manila, to be delayed by three hours. The alleged passenger who made the joke was arrested, and the plane was moved to an isolation area where all baggage of the 221 passengers onboard were rescanned. The plane was scheduled to depart for Manila at six in the evening, but was only allowed to take off at past nine in the evening later that day. See also List of airports in the Philippines Tallest buildings in Davao City References External links – AECOM What's On & Expat Magazine, June 18,