ILOILO – The Iloilo Airport in Cabatuan town is set to accept inbound commercial flights from Metro Manila.
For the time being, however, airlines would only be flying returning overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and locally stranded individuals (LSIs) “because we are still under a modified general community quarantine and we have border restrictions,” said Gov. Arthur Defensor Jr.
Also, as agreed during Defensor’s meeting yesterday afternoon with officials of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) and executives of Air Asia, Cebu Pacific and Philippine Airlines at the provincial capitol, only 1,500 OFWs and LSIs would be allowed to return to Iloilo every week.
This number of passengers would be equally divided among the three airlines.
When would these inbound flights resume?
Defensor said he would first issue an executive order either before this week is over or early next week.
“Passengers would be able to buy airline tickets and go to the airport,” said Defensor.
The executive order may also include requirements that can be demanded from passengers before they can be issued plane tickets, added the governor.
Each airline could have twice-a- week flights to the Iloilo Airport, according to CAAP Iloilo chief Manuela Luisa Palma.
Defensor agreed to set the cap – 1,500 – on the number of weekly air passengers to avoid overwhelming the quarantine facilities of local government units.
Also, so that the receiving local government units could prepare, the governor required the airlines to provide the provincial government with passenger manifestos two days before their flights.
Commercial flights to and from Iloilo were suspended in March this year when the community quarantine was enforced to curb the spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the Iloilo Airport served around 25 arrival and departure flights daily.
Just this June 16, Defensor approved outbound flights to Manila from the Iloilo Airport but only for locally stranded individuals, employees who have work in Metro Manila and overseas workers who have scheduled flights back to their employment abroad.
The initial outbound flights approved were those of the Philippine Airlines.
Defensor said air passengers must have “complete documents” including a travel authority from the Philippine National Police and certification that they were able to complete 14 days of quarantine and didn’t have symptoms of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) such as fever and cough, among others.
The governor said he would be allowing more outbound flights should other airlines offer them but only for locally stranded individuals, overseas workers and those who work in Metro Manila. Iloilo province and the rest of Western Visayas remain under a modified general community quarantine until the end of this month unless extended further or lifted earlier.
Classified as an international airport, the Iloilo Airport is the first airport in both Western Visayas and the island of Panay to be built to international standards. It is also considered to be the primary gateway into the region.
CAAP-Iloilo’s terminal supervisor Art Parreño said the Iloilo Airport has prepared for the resumption of commercial flights. It now has physical distancing markers and has designated hand-washing and decontamination areas.
Thermal scanners at the arrival and departure areas would check people’s temperatures (fever being one of the symptoms of COVID-19)./PN
