Caap official: No hacking in latest software glitch at Naia

Passengers queue at the check-in counters of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 1 in Pasay City on Monday, March 18, 2024. The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (Caap) said Tuesday, May 21, 2024, that no systems hacking happened in Monday’s glitch at the country’s main 
INQUIRER PHOTO / GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE

MANILA, Philippines —The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (Caap) said no systems hacking happened in Monday’s glitch at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia).

“If there was what they call, let us say, a problem or hacking or something like that, nothing like that happened because the software was the only issue,” Caap spokesperson Eric Apoli said in Filipino at Tuesday’s “Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon” public briefing.

Apolinio admitted, however, that the air traffic monitoring system would need to be upgraded since it had been in use since 2010.

READ: Air traffic software glitch delays Naia flights, 9,000 fliers

Naia’s Air Traffic Monitoring Center (ATMC) suffered a software issue, causing flight delays, on May 20.

Caap said in a statement Monday that during its regular monitoring, it identified “a potential problem with the software” of ATMC.

“To ensure the safety of the flying public, Caap decided to be conservative and manage the operations by providing longer separation of departing flights,” it added.

The software glitch delayed or canceled flights and affected around 9,000 travelers.

This is not the first time that the country’s main gateway suffered problems that caused travel disruptions.

A 2023 New Year’s Day power outage shut down Naia as it caused the navigation system to go offline. The incident prompted investigations by lawmakers from both the Senate and House of Representatives.