Flights bound to and from Manila have already resumed yesterday morning at the Davao International Airport after the planes were temporarily grounded due to risks posed by the Taal volcano eruption.
In an interview, Maj. Ronel Tesorero, the officer-in-charge of Davao International Airport Police Station, that passengers can expect some delays in the flights in the coming days, depending on the situation in Batangas.
Tesorero said Philippine Airlines and Cebu Pacific airlines already resumed some flights yesterday.
Also at 6:10 p.m., Air Asia flights from Davao bound for Manila resumed. However, according to the bulletin, some of the passengers who were stranded since Sunday would not be accommodated until Jan. 18. Apparently, they were prioritizing the earlier passengers who also could not make their flights.
More than 2,300 passengers bound for Manila have been stranded in airports in Davao and Soccsksargen regions since Sunday afternoon.
The canceled flight affected 1,715 passengers at the Francisco Bangoy International Airport here and 600 passengers at the General Santos International Airport.
Tesorero said at least 20 flights bound to Manila were canceled. Planes coming from the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) in Manila were also canceled.
Tesorero said they fielded some 40 airport police officers, including teams from the Special Operations Unit and Explosive Ordnance Division, to monitor and ensure the safety of the stranded passengers.
Ten flights in
GSC canceled
Meanwhile, 10 flights from the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) to General Santos City and vice versa were canceled Monday due to the eruption of Taal Volcano in the main island of Luzon Sunday afternoon, an official said.
Edgardo Cueto, manager of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) here, said five inbound flights have been scrapped as of 3:30 p.m. — four by Cebu Pacific Air and one by Philippine Airlines.
As a result, Cueto said the five outbound flights of the same airlines were subsequently canceled.
“That’s a total of around 1,300 passengers affected for the 10 canceled flights,” he said.
Cueto said most passengers of the five scheduled flights to Manila still proceeded to the city international airport despite announcements regarding the cancellations.
He said airline and airport personnel just advised them to go home and re-book their flights to later dates.
As of 3:30 p.m., the airport has not served any inbound flight from Manila and they were still waiting for advice from their central office as to the status of the other flights.
The city airport serves at least seven non-stop or direct flights daily to Manila and one each to Cebu and Iloilo.
CAAP put on hold all inbound and outbound flights at the NAIA starting past 6 p.m Sunday as ashfall from Taal Volcano reached parts of Metro Manila, including the airport’s runway and ramps.
It resumed the departures at NAIA starting at 10 a.m. Monday and the arrivals at noon.
Cueto said the other flights between the city and Manila were expected to resume due to the reopening of the NAIA.
“If there will be no major eruption by the (Taal) Volcano in the new few hours, the flight operations will return to normal,” he said. (with MindaNews)
