More than 40 international and domestic flights bound for Manila had to be diverted to other airports in the Philippines on Saturday due to poor visibility after thick haze blanketed the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) and surrounding areas. The flights bound for NAIA were diverted to the Diosdado Macapagal International Airport in Clark, Pampanga and to the Cebu International Airport in Cebu City. A Philippine Air Lines statement said other flights were also diverted to Iloilo. The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) said the flights had to be diverted because there was almost “zero visibility” at the NAIA, which could cause the pilots to miss the runway should they try to land. CAAP consultant Lito Casaul said they only allow airplanes to land at the NAIA when visibility is four kilometers or more. On Saturday, visibility at the airport dropped to one kilometer, he added. Officials explained that the haze that enveloped the airport was an atmospheric phenomenon wherein dust, smoke and other dry particles obscured the sky. They said that although haze is normally expected because of pollution in the air, Saturday's haze formation at the airport was unexpectedly thicker than usual. Compounding the problem was the still malfunctioning navigational aids at the airport that help pilots land their planes even in poor visibility. Officials said both the Instrument Landing System and the Very High Frequency Omnidirectional Radio Range (VOR) station were still inoperable. As the thick haze blanketed the airport and large parts of Metro Manila and surrounding areas, scores of international and domestic flights bound for Manila were diverted to the Diosdado Macapagal International Airport in Pampanga. Some flights, including two from Cathay Pacific, opted to just fly in circles above the Manila airspace until conditions improved by 12 noon. Cathay Pacific flight CX907 which was supposed to arrive at 9:55 a.m. flew in circles above Metro Manila for two hours while CX901 was scheduled to arrive at 11:15a.m. circled the air for 55 minutes before finally being able to land.
