Airport authorities vowed to improve services at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) after it was named the third “most stressful” airport in Asia and Oceania.
Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) senior assistant general manager Bryan Co, quoted by a GMA News report, issued the remark after the website Hawaiian Islands recently reported that 57.81% of reviews for NAIA indicated stress.
“We accept all of these as constructive inputs for us to improve these services at NAIA,” Co said.
The official said the MIAA is “doing a lot of things including the terminal reassignment to balance the capacity in order to avoid congestion.”
“The number one complaint in terms of being stressful is the length of the queue or the congestion, but as you’ve noted one of the things that we removed is the initial screening as well as the vehicle checkpoint so it is really slowly being implemented in our programs,” he said
Co also said on delayed baggage and baggage carts, the MIAA is coordinating with the major airlines and ground handlers to make sure that they have enough personnel in order to prevent delays, especially for the arriving passengers.
The website Hawaiian Islands came up with the rankings after looking through 1,500 Google reviews for over 500 airports around the world and ranking based on the percentage of reviews that indicated stress.
The MIAA meanwhile said it logged around 125,000 passengers per day this December – the peak season for air travel. Co said the airports are currently in the middle of the peak of what they anticipated for this month.
The official said the MIAA recorded around 125,000 passengers per day, compared to around 100,000 passengers per day in November. He said he expects the number to increase.
Co said most of these passengers arrived from other countries including the United States, Canada, and the Middle East.
In a related report, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said it monitored 21,995 outbound passengers in all seaports across the country ahead of Christmas Eve.
Based on its latest report, a total of 17,979 inbound passengers were also recorded as of 6 a.m. on December 23.
The PCG said it deployed 2,001 frontline personnel in 15 PCG districts and inspected 207 vessels and 69 motorbancas.
It likewise placed all of its districts, stations, and sub-stations on “heightened alert” from December 15 to January 7, 2023, to manage the influx of passengers amid the Holiday Season.
Travelers were advised to coordinate with the PCG for their inquiries, concerns, and clarifications on travel protocols and regulations this Christmas season through its official Facebook page or the Coast Guard Public Affairs (0927-560-7729).