As part of the Philippines “rolling out the red carpet” for Pope Francis’ upcoming visit, airlines cancelled flights, after the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines announced limited operations at Manila’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) from Thursday, January 15, to Monday, January 19.
The list of airlines that have cancelled and rescheduled flights to and from Manila during the papal visit include Cebu Pacific, TigerAir Philippines, AirAsia, Philippine Airlines and Cathay Pacific. Passengers scheduled to travel on the aforementioned dates are urged to visit their airlineโs website for information on rebooking and refunds, if any.
The cancellations are due to the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines’ (CAAP) implementation no fly zones and runway closures to give way to the Pope’s entourage:
January 15
Ninoy Aquino International Airport, Manila
-Primary runway (06/24) and secondary runway (13/31) closed for all arriving flights
-Departing flights allowed to operate from 2:00-5:15 pm.
-No fly zone between 5:15-6:15pm
January 17
-Daniel Z. Romualdez Airport, Tacloban City (Closed from 6:00 am-9:00 pm, except for Papal entourageโs aircraft)
-Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Closed from 7:45 am โ 8:45 am, and from 5:45 โ 6:45 pm)
January 19
Ninoy Aquino International Airport
-Open for departing aircraft between 6:00 am โ 9:30 am
-No fly zone from 9:30 am โ 10:30 am