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| NAIA Terminal 1 was the only one left operating after Manila was locked down on Mar 16 |
The Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) has
announced that all passenger and commercial flights to and from the Philippines
will be suspended from 8am today, May 3.
The announcement, posted on the Facebook page of the
Ninoy Aquino International Airport MIAA at 11:50pm last night, said the order
came from Secretary Carlito Galvez, Jr., chief implementer of the Inter-Agency Task
Force Against Covid-19.
It was said to be in line with the effort to stop the spread of the deadly coronavirus in the country.
But cargo flights, including those carrying medical
supplies, “utility and maintenance flights will remain unhampered,” said the
advisory.
The news came as the Philippines’ total tally from the
pandemic rose to 8,928, with 156 new cases reported. The death toll also rose
to 603, with 24 new deaths being reported within a 24-hour period.
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| Flights to and from Manila kept dwindling as more countries implemented lockdowns |
Earlier in the day, the MIAA issued an advisory listing
down all the flights that would be allowed under the enhanced community
quarantine (ECQ) under which Metro Manila and much of Luzon has been placed.
The list still included international flights “subject to
existing IATF-EID (emerging infectious diseases)/BOQ (Bureau of Quarantine)
protocols.”
Also allowed to continue were government and military
flights, medical and emergency flights,
and domestic flights to and from provinces under the more relaxed general
community quarantine (GCQ).
There were only six international flights listed as operating
out of NAIA Terminal 1 on May 2, including the daily flights of Hong Kong Airlines
and Cathay Pacific Airways between Manila and Hong Kong.
The others were Etihad which flew to and from Abu Dhabi,
Japan Airlines from Tokyo, Qatar Airways from Doha, and Korean Air from Seoul.
These were just half the number of flights listed for the
previous day, May 1, a public holiday in most countries.
