The Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Filipino: Paliparang Pandaigdig ng Ninoy Aquino) or NAIA (pronounced /ˈnaɪ.ə/), (IATA: MNL, ICAO: RPLL) is the airport serving the general area of Manila and its surrounding metropolitan area. Located along the border between Pasay City and Parañaque City, about seven kilometers south of Manila proper, and southwest of Makati City, NAIA is the main international gateway for travelers to the Philippines and is the hub for all Philippine airlines. It is managed by the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA), a branch of the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC).
The original airport that served Manila, the Manila International Air Terminal, was opened in July 1937 at Nielson Field, the runways of which now form Ayala Avenue and Paseo de Roxas in Makati City. In 1948, following Philippine independence, the airport was moved to its current site adjacent to the Villamor Airbase, which was then called Nichols Field. The original structure was built on what is now the site of the present-day Terminal 2. In 1954 the airport's international runway and associated taxiway were built, and in 1961, the construction of a control tower and a terminal building for the use of international passengers was completed.