The Cebu Pacific Air (CEB) management clarified reports related to an early morning incident at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) involving one of their aircrafts.
Initial reports suggested that a CEB A-321 plane overshot or veered off the taxiway onto the grassy area while moving from Bay 111 to Bay 122A.
However, CEB’s chief information officer, Carmina Romero, clarified that the aircraft was not in operation, landing, or taking off. It was undergoing a repositioning or parking procedure and became stuck on the ground.
“During repositioning or parking procedure, it got stuck on the ground. That’s why it has no flight number, no passengers, no flight crew. The aircraft was simply being repositioned,” Romero said.
“Inililipat ng puwesto (at) nabalahaw (It was repositioned and then it got stuck),” she added.
The Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) stated there were no passengers or crew on board, and no injuries were reported when the incident occurred.
The airport management asked for the understanding of travelers whose flights may be affected due to expected delays in schedules of arrival and departure. It stated they are still in the process of determining the number of affected flights.
Passengers were advised to wait for airline announcements regarding revised timings.
The MIAA stated that the Aircraft Recovery team is currently working on removing the aircraft from the grassy area.
Due to the incident, Bays 110-112 are temporarily unavailable, leaving three parking bays available for wide-body aircraft.
CEB management is addressing ramp congestion and operational delays due to a disabled aircraft being removed by personnel.
They are working to resolve the issue promptly and apologize for any inconvenience caused. Further updates will be provided as they become available. They appreciate cooperation and apologize for any inconvenience caused.
As of this posting, 13 international flights were affected because of the incident.
