In a formal ceremony held in Santo Domingo, Vice President Raquel Peña led the inauguration of a sweeping infrastructure modernization project at San Isidro Air Base, joined by senior representatives from three key national bodies: the Dominican Institute of Civil Aviation (IDAC), the national Airport Department, and the Dominican Republic Air Force. The multi-million peso upgrade delivers three core new assets to the base: a cutting-edge air traffic control tower, a completely overhauled runway lighting network, and updated horizontal runway markings, addressing decades of outdated infrastructure to lift national aeronautical safety and capabilities. A core strategic objective of the project is to establish San Isidro Air Base as a certified alternate diversion runway for Las Américas International Airport José Francisco Peña Gómez, the country’s busiest international gateway, during unforeseen emergencies or service disruptions at the main facility.
Total public investment in the modernization effort tops RD$819 million, equal to roughly $15.4 million U.S. dollars, split between two leading government agencies. The national civil aviation authority contributed more than RD$600 million to deliver the project’s high-tech core components, including a modernized control cabin, upgraded digital communication networks, new DVOR/DME navigation equipment, and a redundant energy backup system to ensure uninterrupted operations during power outages. The Airport Department allocated an additional RD$219 million to supply and install the runway beacons and horizontal signaling systems, with all work completed to align with strict global safety standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Senior project leads emphasized that the previous lighting and navigation infrastructure had been in continuous operation for more than 60 years, and the modernization will boost the runway’s operational capacity and reliability for decades to come.
Speaking during the inauguration event, IDAC Director Igor Rodríguez Durán noted that the infrastructure upgrades at San Isidro are just one part of a broader national strategy to strengthen the Dominican Republic’s aviation ecosystem, which drives critical sectors of the national economy including connectivity, tourism, and trade. He outlined a pipeline of additional ongoing aeronautical improvement projects across the country, including the deployment of new advanced radar systems at Cibao International Airport, the replacement of aging out-of-date radar hardware at Gregorio Luperón International Airport, and the installation of new Instrument Landing System (ILS) technology at both Punta Cana International Airport and Las Américas International Airport. Rodríguez also confirmed that active construction and upgrades are ongoing at Cabo Rojo International Airport, a development positioned as a strategic economic and tourism hub that will unlock new investment and growth in the Dominican Republic’s southern region. To underscore the sector’s growing momentum, officials shared that the Dominican aeronautics industry recorded 79,693 total air operations across all facilities during the first four months of the current year, signaling steady recovery and expansion of the country’s air travel market.