Philippine Airlines to curtail flights at Ninoy Aquino International Airport to ease traffic

Philippine Airlines recently announced that its new management has decided to decongest the main airport in the Philippine by reducing the number flights, which otherwise most carriers won’t do.

Ramon Ang, new President of Philippine Airline, has indicated that the national carrier will “cooperate” with the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) after it requested to cut the number of Philippine Airlines flights at Manila’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport to ease traffic on its runways.

Ramon Ang’s company San Miguel Corp. recently acquired a 49 percent stake in Philippine Airlines.

Mar Roxas, Philippine’s Transportation Secretary, had pointed out that the airline’s tight scheduling of its flights are responsible for the delays experienced by the passengers at the airport. He said that the airport presently has a capacity of only 36 takeoffs and landings, while around 45 takeoffs and landings are scheduled per hour at the airport. This is, in fact, higher than the airport’s ideal capacity. He also claimed that the carriers are booking most flights during peak hours.

Cebu Pacific, Gokongwei-owned budget carrier, has said that it is the responsibility of aviation officials to prepare a plan with a well-managed airport slotting, dictating the specific time an airline should take for its landings and takeoffs from the airport in order to prevent congestion.