BACOLOD City – The provincial government has arranged sweeper flights with the Philippine Airlines (PAL) for the repatriation this week of residents stranded in Metro Manila due to travel restrictions brought by coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
On Monday, Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson and Bacolod-Silay Airport manager Percy Malonesio led the inspection of the installation of thermal scanners and swab-testing booths for COVID-19 at the airport located in Silay City.
Charina Magallanes-Tan, spokesperson of Provincial Incident Management Team for COVID-19, said the three-day repatriation flights started yesterday.
Passengers on the special flights are paying for their own fare, she added.
The trips from Metro Manila depart around 11 a.m. and arrive in Bacolod-Silay Airport around 12:30 p.m.
Locally stranded individuals (LSIs) in Negros Occidental and Bacolod City can also book for seats on a return flight scheduled at 1 p.m.
Magallanes-Tan said those who have previously bought tickets from PAL for Bacolod-bound flights need to rebook to take either of the sweeper flights.
“PAL will just refund the payments made for commercial flights,” she added.
The provincial government warned that anyone misrepresenting his or her identity, residence and other personal details to obtain a ticket will be blacklisted and subjected to criminal and administrative action.
Magallanes-Tan said the provincial government organized these sweeper flights to ensure that LSIs and returning Negrenses will be given priority in all flights until June 15.
After that, the Bacolod-Silay Airport will already be opened to commercial flights.
On Monday also, eight overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who are residents of Bacolod and 13 others from this province were repatriated aboard an AirAsia sweeper flight from Manila around 12:50 a.m.
Some 21 OFWs and a child – all from Negros Occidental – also landed at the Bacolod-Silay Airport around 2:50 a.m. on June 7. Twelve Bacolodonons were also on the same flight.
Later that day, a total of 102 LSIs who are residents of this city arrived on a PAL special flight around 3 p.m.
On June 6, a PAL sweeper flight carrying 14 Negrense and three Bacolodnon overseas workers landed at the airport around 2:15 a.m.(With a report from PNA/PN)
