For first four days of Holy Week, MIAA says flights at Naia remain ‘on time’

Thousands of domestic passengers arrive at Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3 in this file photo taken in November 2022. INQUIRER file photo / SAMUEL YAP

MANILA, Philippines — The Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) reported a high on-time performance in the first few days of the Holy Week since Palm Sunday, the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) said on Wednesday.

MIAA Senior Assistant Manager Bryan Co said the airport had observed a high-efficiency rate in the first days of the Lenten season, which means flights departing and arriving at Naia remain on time, which eases travel crowds this Holy Week.

“Ang implication po nito [high on-time performance] ay hindi po dadami ang tao o iipon ang tao dahil tuloy-tuloy naman po ang pag-didispatch at pag-aarrive ng ating mga flights,” he said in a public briefing.

(This high on-time performance implies that people will never crowd [at the airport] because the dispatch and arrival of our flights continue to be efficient.)

According to Co, Naia observed 70 percent, 86 percent, 91 percent, and 87 percent on-time performance from Saturday to Tuesday.

MIAA recorded around 110,000 to 120,000 passengers daily in all terminals in the last few days, the official said.

However, Naia expects a 15-percent increase in passenger crowds from Wednesday to Thursday, the expected departure dates for Filipinos this Holy Week.

The airport then expects surges of returning travelers on Sunday (Eastern) and Monday (Araw ng Kagitingan), Co said.

According to MIAA, about 1.2 million passengers are expected to use the terminals in the 10-day holiday period.

MIAA recently said it is ready for a two-million passenger influx during the Lenten break.

Several adjustments, such as deploying additional personnel, reassigning flights, and adding immigration counters, were done before the holidays, the agency said.

—MJ Soriano,  INQUIRER.net trainee

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