Philippines says to shut airspace for six hours on May 17

The Philippines’ airspace will be closed for six hours on May 17 to allow the replacement of an electrical equipment that malfunctioned and shut the Southeast Asian country’s air traffic systems on New Year’s Day, affecting thousands of passengers.

“It’s the entire Philippine airspace that will be shut down” due to the scheduled replacement of the uninterruptible power supply at the air traffic management center, Bryan Co, senior assistant general manager at the Manila International Airport Authority told a briefing on Tuesday.

The closure will take place at 12 a.m. to 6 a.m., which is typically a lean period for airport operations so the activity will cause the “least disruption,” said Co.

Philippine Airlines will carry out necessary flight adjustments for the scheduled shutdown, said spokesperson Cielo Villaluna. The flag carrier is coordinating with the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines so it can make adjustments to its operations and inform passengers, she said. There will be no affected flghts at Cebu Pacific Air, spokesperson Carmina Romero said.

The New Year’s Day shutdown caused by a power outage affected about 600 flights and around 65,000 passengers. 

On Monday, a power failure that lasted nearly eight hours hit the Philippines’ main airport, leading to dozens of flight cancellations and delays and leaving thousands of passengers stranded following a long holiday weekend. A seven-hour blackout in September at the same airport affected more than 30 flights.

The airport operator will meet with the airlines on Wednesday to get their feedback on flights that would be affected by the May 17 shutdown, said Cesar Chiong, general manager at the agency. “If the passengers are advised, I don’t think there’s going to be a problem,” he said.

The aviation authority will also conduct “corrective maintenance” at the air traffic management center on Wednesday at 2 a.m. to 4 a.m., according to a statement posted on the airport operator’s Facebook page. It said it has coordinated with airlines and airport operators across the country in advance and discussed measures “to ensure the smooth conduct” of the maintenance work.