Flights to be retimed to address delays

THE NINOY Aquino International Airport is soon to implement a new measure to address flight delay involving a more efficient implementation of the current policy on flight movements per hour.

Ten flight movements will be grouped per 15minute block periods to ensure compliance with the said policy of having a maximum of 40 movements per hour. This was discussed in a coordination meeting recently between the Manila International Airport Authority ( MIAA), the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines, and the Civil Aeronautics Board with executives of domestic airlines.

Scheduled arriving and departing flights be- yond 10 movements per block time will be retimed and accommodated in the next quarter- hour. Likewise, flights which will be unable to meet their original schedule will be retimed to the next block period to guarantee the on- time performance of other flights.

Airline executives – including Philippine Airlines ( PAL) President Jaime Bautista, PAL Express Vice President for Ground Operations Bryan Lim, Cebu Pacific Chief Executive Adviser Garry Kingshott, Cebgo President Michael Shau, and Air Asia Zest Chairwoman Maan Hontiveros – were agreeable to the measure, but they requested more time to review how to align their internal procedures with it.

MIAA General Manager Jose Angel Honrado thanks the airline executives for their continued cooperation to address the concerns of the flying public. “It is high time that the authorities and the airlines set aside differences to enhance the experience of every passenger. Through effective collaboration, this new measure will minimize delays at the NAIA,” Honrado said.

Further consultations will be conducted by the MIAA with foreign airlines and its slot coordinator, Airport Coordination Australia, to finalize the measure. The MIAA expects its full implementation to start as early as next month.