Quake affects 115 flights at Clark

MANILA, Philippines — Over 12,000 passengers were affected by flight cancellations at Clark International Airport Corp. (Ciac) in Pampanga after large portions of the ceiling in its passenger terminal collapsed at the height of the 6.1-magnitude earthquake on Monday.

Local and international airlines canceled at least 115 flights when the airport was closed on April 22, with 60 flights canceled on Tuesday, said Ciac president Jaime Melo.

The airlines have called on affected passengers to contact them for refund, rebooking or rerouting options.

The airport was targeting “partial operations” today, April 24, since its tower, apron, runways and taxiways have remained structurally sound following an inspection by airport authorities.

A growing number of airlines operate flights from Clark, including local carriers Philippine Airlines, Cebu Pacific and Air Asia, as well as Singapore’s Scoot and Dubai’s Emirates.

The Manila International Airport Authority (Miaa), which operates Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia), meanwhile warned airline companies against taking advantage of Monday’s earthquake to arbitrarily delay or cancel flights.

The Miaa said there was no damage to Naia runway and taxiway facilities, and no reported concerns on the terminal buildings following inspections by various Miaa teams.

Naia chief Ed Monreal on Tuesday directed his operations team to admit flights that cannot be accommodated at Clark, following proper procedures and coordination with the Civil Aeronautics Board and the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines.

Bureau of Immigration (BI) officials at Naia also assured that it has enough manpower to service passengers of flights diverted to Manila following the closure of Ciac, as it has extended its ban on the filing of vacation leaves by BI personnel assigned to counter duties. —With reports from Marlon Ramos and Tina G. Santos