AN estimated 80,000 arriving and departing passengers from 516 flights were affected by the closure of the premier airport Sunday as ashfall blanketed Batangas, Cavite, and parts of Laguna and Metro Manila following the eruption of Taal Volcano.
According to airport manager Ed Monreal, as many as 25,000 passengers remain at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) as of Monday, hoping to be accommodated on their carriers while authorities struggled to clean the runways of tons of sand delivered by clouds from the erupting volcano.
He said there is uneven distribution of sand, with runway 06 on the Parañaque side having about an inch thick, tapering toward runway 24, on the Southern Luzon Expressway side, having a thinner cover of sand.
“The cleaning crew vacuumed the runways starting at 4 a.m., then blasted it further with hose from firemen we have requested to assist to make sure airplanes [do not] ingest the fine particles,” Monreal added.
In times such as this, the Manila International Airport Authority (Miaa) does not fully utilize their own fire and rescue services to assist in case of emergencies, and simply request the assistance of neighboring fire and rescue services, such as those of Pasay and Parañaque.
Monreal said that as of 10 a.m., Monday, the Naia was partially open, giving priority to departing aircraft that have been cleared by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (Caap), while arriving aircraft were expected to follow at 12 noon “subject to the terminal clearance.”
Director General Capt. Jim Sydiongco said the airlines in Manila were told to have the engines of their planes which Monday, examined for the presence of ashes, with a warning that the silica in the ash melts and it could gum up the engine.
The ash is also an abrasive material which could totally damage the engines, as one of the foreign airlines experienced when it ran into a cloud full of ash from the eruption of Mount Pinatubo in June of 1991, while coming from the eastern Philippines headed for Manila.
At the same time, Monreal and Sydiongco said all the parking slots are full, and they would not allow incoming airplanes to land until those waiting at the Naia have left.
‘Pireps’ crucial
Sydiongco added that he is also waiting for flights to resume so that pilot reports (“Pireps” is the technical term) could tell them the location and direction of clouds suspected of harboring the ashes from Taal volcano.
Aviation rules allow pilots to relay any important information they gather while on flight to the Caap air-traffic controllers or any of their ground receiving stations across the country to alert other pilots. The Caap in turn notifies all air carriers with important Pireps by issuing a notice to airmen (Notam), Sydiongco explained.
Monreal said they expect the runways and taxiways to be cleared of ash and sand by Monday afternoon. He said arriving flights could be accommodated “subject to the availability of parking slots.”
They had what he called “a terminal capacity issue,” and although the ashfall has stopped, “we are still waiting for announcement from the Phivolcs [Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology], which is also partly dependent on Japanese satellites, [to help indicate] whether Taal Volcano would have a major eruption and what would be the direction of the ashfalls.”
“Let us hope that there would be no more eruption,” Monreal added.
He said the ash that fell over Metro Manila late Sunday was carried by a southerly wind, which has not shifted coming from the east, which is called Amihan.
Meanwhile, the three major domestic carriers said on Monday they have already provided accommodation to passengers affected by the flight suspension, despite the force majeure nature of the flight cancellations. All the carriers have advised their passengers to get in touch with their airlines for rebooking and for the latest development.
Despite pleas from the airlines for passengers not to proceed to the airport until their flights have been confirmed, many passengers ignored the advice, and went to the Naia to make sure they could board once the flights resumed.
Following their airport briefing, Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade directed Monreal, Sydiongco and Arcilla “to do whatever is necessary in the interest of public safety.”
Image credits: Nonie Reyes