Scores of Doha-based Filipino passengers affected after Manila airport shutdown

Hundreds of Manila-bound Filipino passengers from Qatar went through a harrowing experience on Monday after the Philippines' main airport suspended its operations following cracks found on its runway apparently caused by heavy rainfall, Qatar Tribune reported.

The Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Manila, according to news reports, had developed sizeable cracks on 'runway 06' preventing aircraft to either take off or land, thereby resulting in major diversions and affecting air traffic.

Narrating their frustrating experiences, passengers onboard a flight from Doha to Manila told Qatar Tribune that their plane was suddenly diverted to the Clark International Airport in the northern province of Pampanga, in the Philippines.

A Filipino passenger said: "The flight diversion took all of us by surprise. The flight landed at the Clark International Airport at 5pm (local time) but to our utter dismay we weren’t allowed to disembark the aircraft."

The irate Filipino passenger continued: "We were stuck in the aircraft for about eight hours, before being allowed to disembark. The crew kept on telling us that several other aircraft were also being diverted [to the airport], causing the long delay."

Another Filipino passenger said: "After a nine-hour flight from Doha to Clark, I had to wait for eight more hours to disembark. My legs got cramped and I couldn’t catch any sleep in the last 15 hours. I'm here on vacation, but now I’m feeling sick."

Furthermore, there were allegations that some passengers were not served any dinner as they were patiently waiting to disembark at the Clark airport.

"We felt very sorry for the small children who were continuously crying inside the plane. The parents were just helpless," a third Filipino passenger said.

Passengers also complained about missing their connecting flights. Some of them have even reportedly demanded compensation from the airline authorities. There were also reports of flights being diverted to countries like Singapore and Vietnam.

The closure of 'runway 06' of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport led to the diversion of at least 22 flights to Clark International Airport, Xinhua news agency reported.

According to an IANS report, Manila International Airport Authority General Manager Ed Monreal ordered the temporary closure of the runway to avoid safety issues and untoward incidents to aircraft and passengers.

"The small asphalt cracks observed by airport crew in the morning [on Monday] got considerably bigger due to continued landing and take off," Monreal reportedly said.

The crack in the asphalt overlay of the runway was five inches deep, one metre wide and nine metres long, he said.

"But to avoid further deterioration, a bigger area of 4MX19M will undergo construction," he elaborated.

The report added that the airport management hoped to reopen the runway "very soon".

Courtesy: Qatar-tribune.com