A sideproject for everyone
who flies through Manila.

What this is

Better NAIA is a realtime reference for Ninoy Aquino International Airport — built to put live flight status alongside everything else a traveller might need, whether you're catching the flight, fetching someone at arrivals, or seeing someone off. It also collects the small practical things that catch people out on the way to or from Manila: terminal fees, eTravel registration, airline contacts, and the rest.

Why I built it

• I fly through NAIA often, and wanted a small reference for myself.
• Tinkering on the data side is fun — it's a nice complement to the day job.
• If it's useful to me, it's probably useful to other travellers too — and sharing it costs nothing.
• Some of what I learn each trip is worth writing down for whoever comes through next.

How the data works

Better NAIA stitches a handful of sources into a single view:

• Flight schedules come from a third-party flight data provider.
• Realtime flight status is computed from a small network of ADS-B receivers I run around the Philippines, with public ADS-B feeds filling in for flights outside PH airspace.
• Parking availability is published by New NAIA Infrastructure Corporation (NNIC).
• Airline information — homepages, online check-in links, contact details — is compiled by hand from public sources.
• Weather is read from METARs published by PAGASA.

Combined, they add up to a fuller picture than any single source on its own. The site itself is proudly hosted in the Philippines.