Airport and airline authorities called on the public to be wary of bomb pranks and warned that making bomb joke is punishable by law.
On Thursday, flag carrier Philippine Airlines announced it will file a criminal complaint against a passenger of a PAL Dumaguete-Manila flight who made a bomb joke when the passengers were about to board the aircraft that resulted in the flight delay for four hours.
Ma. Cielo Villaluna, head of PAL Corporate Communications Department and spokesperson, said the airline will file a case against a passenger, whose name was temporarily withheld, for violation of Presidential Decree 1727 (False Bomb Threat) which punishes, among others, malicious dissemination of false information knowing the same to be false.
Villaluna said the airline management cautions the public against making bomb jokes. She added such action results in grave inconvenience to the flight, its passengers and succeeding flight services.
Under the law, anyone circulating hoax warnings through email and text messages can be held criminally liable as it constitutes a willful dissemination of false information which is punishable by law.
The perpetrator of the hoax could also be charged with unlawful rumor mongering and even those who apologize for circulating the hoax can still be held liable.
Part of the security measure at the airports is the inspection of luggage while passengers undergoes rigid body frisking in a bid that no firearms or explosives might be brought inside the airport undetected.
In 2007, actor John Estrada was briefly held at the airport in General Santos City for joking that he was carrying a bomb in his bag.
Estrada was about to fly back to Manila via a Philippine Airlines flight when the incident happened. He was released and allowed to board the plane after his baggage was thoroughly inspected.
Police said Estrada apologized later and told them he had learned his lesson not to joke about bombs in airports.
Also in September 2016, a 34-year-old air cargo employee at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport was arrested for joking that he was carrying a bomb inside his car.
The Manila International Airport Authority is keeping strict surveillance of passengers within the airport and implement strict car inspection.
The Airport Police Department personnel, on the other hand, man the entrances of the airport terminals and outer perimeters.
Meanwhile, the government formally opened for commercial flight operation of the San Vicente Airport which is expected to boost the tourism industry in Palawan islands.
Eric Apolonio, chief information officer of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines, said the construction of the P62.7-million airport began in 2009 in a bid to provide more flights and routes for air travelers going to and from Palawan and help boost the country’s first Flagship Tourism Enterprise Zone.
He said that Department of Transportation officials led by Secretary Arthur Tugade and CAAP director general Jim Sydiongco led the inauguration of the facility.
Palawan 1st District Rep. Franz Alvarez, Palawan Gov. Jose Alvarez, and San Vicente Mayor Maria Carmela Alvarez were also present to represent the local governments of Palawan and San Vicente.
Apolonio said the SVA was officially opened to light aircraft on June 22, 2017, while charter flights from Air Juan was launched on August 2017.
After the inauguration, the facility will begin to cater to commercial flights, providing more access to various tourist destinations in Palawan.
Started in 2006, then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo announced the construction of a new airport in San Vicente to jump-start tourism development not only in San Vicente, but in other parts of Northern Palawan.
Over the years, funding was allocated for the construction of the airport, along with enhancement of facilities and concreting of various areas in preparation for SVA’s commercial operations.
Seen as the country’s first Flagship Tourism Enterprise Zone, the booming town of San Vicente, a first-class municipality, is home to the longest white beach in the Philippines, known as Long Beach, which boasts a stretch of 14 kilometers spanning to the coastline of four barangays.
CAAP oversees 81 airports nationwide while it only manages airside operations in four others which are controlled by other airport authorities, including the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, Subic, Clark and Cebu-Mactan International Airports.