The Cebu Pacific Air announced it has canceled at least 27 domestic and two international flights scheduled on Friday (Aug. 11) at the Mactan Cebu International Airport which will be closed to give way for the scheduled repair of the airport runway.
The canceled domestic flights include 5J-562 and 5J-553 (Cebu-Manila-Cebu), 5J-563 and 5J-564 (Manila-Cebu-Manila), 5J-586 and 5J-551 (Cebu-Manila-Cebu), 5J-608 (Cebu-Clark), 5J-611 (Davao Cebu), DG-6739 and DG-6738 (Cagayan de Oro-Davao-Cagayan de Oro), DG-6298 and DG-6299 (Caticlan-Clark-Caticlan), 5J-485 and 5J-486 (Manila-Bacolod-Manila), 5J-959 (Manila-Davao), DG-6462 and DG6463 (Cebu-Bacolod-Cebu), DG-6715 and DG06716 (Cebu- Cagayan de Oro-Cebu), DG-6690 and DG-6691 (Cebu-Camiguin-Cebu), DG-6272 and DG-6273 (Cebu- Caticlan-Cebu), DG-6408 and DG-6409 (Cebu-Iloilo-Cebu) and DG6588 and DG6589 (Cebu-Ormoc-Cebu).
International flights to and from Hong Kong 5J-240 and 5J-241 were also canceled.
Local airport authorities said the runway will be closed for six hours on Aug. 11 in preparation for its repair. They added that the closure, beginning 2:30 a.m. until 8:30 a.m., will be made in order to commence the second half of its repairs.
“The runway repairs are precautionary in nature and are designed to ensure that the best possible level of safety is afforded to the passengers and stakeholders of the airport,” said the Mactan-Cebu International Airport Authority in its advisory.
The Cebu Pacific management advised affected passengers to check the travel itineraries or tickets, and contact its hotlines at (+632)702-0888 or (+6332)230-8888 for further information and inquiries.
Last Friday, a Manila-bound Cebu Pacific Air plane with 435 passengers on board was involved in an incident at the said airport before taking off.
In a statement, the airline management said the nose wheel (or front landing gear) of the aircraft used for flight 5J-570 left the paved surface during a 180 degree turn while taxiing prior to take off.
The incident happened around 6:35 pm which resulted in the closure of the airport runway for at least four hours, affecting a number of domestic and international flights of both Cebu Pacific Air and Philippine Airlines.
The airline said that all 435 passengers, including three infants, were safe and deplaned at 8:45 pm.
The passengers returned to Manila at 5:30 am the next day after the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) declared normal operations at the airport.
