The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) has ordered the closure of Lingayen Airport in Pangasinan from Thursday morning to Saturday afternoon on safety and security concerns as people troop to a nearby cemetery using the airport’s 1,634-meter runway as a shortcut to the gravesites.
The airport, which sits across Lingayen Public Cemetery, also has to deal with flight hazards like individuals flying kites on the runway in the belief that it is an effective way of conveying messages to their departed.
CAAP issued a notice to airmen saying operations in the airport are closed from 7 a.m of Oct. 31 to 5 p.m. of Nov. 2.
The notice also covers three flying academies based at the airport—Fast Inc. Academy, Fastlink and Signature Aviation. Affected by the closure are 114 flights that land and take off daily at Lingayen Airport.—Jerome Aning