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Friday, March 29, 2024

Lightning alert delays Naia flights

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Several international and domestic flights at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport were delayed because of the bad weather condition on Saturday.

The weather bureau issued a lightning red alert to NAIA resulting in the delay of arrival and departure of 13 international and domestic flights in terminals 2, 3 and 4.

“Due to the lightning red alert that prevailed over NAIA from 1:03 p.m. to 1:23 p.m. and 1:33 p.m. to 1:44 p.m., there were no ground movement as a safety measure,” the Manila International Airport Authority management said in a statement.

Those affected included Philippine Airlines flights to and from Xiamen, Saigon and Cagayan de Oro; Cebu Pacific Air international flights to and from Hong Kong, Dubai, Kansai, and Singapore, and domestic flights to and from Caticlan, Iloilo and Legaspi; and Air Asia flights to and from Tagbilaran and Puerto Princesa.

Lightning alerts are adopted in most airports worldwide as a safety measure to protect ramp workers from death or injury caused by a lightning strike. 

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The MIAA general manager Eddie Monreal said while airplanes had their own lightning protection, continued movement of ground personnel are discouraged because of the possibility of current to travel on the pavement before it finally discharges on the ground especially if the aircraft has not finally reached the radius of protection. 

Personal protection equipment or gears worn by ramp workers may not be enough to protect them from the at least 24 megavolts of current carried by a lightning. 

Lightning happens during thunderstorms due to friction in air causing negatively charged particles in the atmosphere to be attracted by the positively or zero charged ground or pavement.

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